The incident on Tuesday morning that saw numerous Kamloops RCMP vehicles speed to Brocklehurst involved a report of a man with a handgun and ended with an arrest and the seizure of a BB handgun that looks like a real weapon.
Cpl. Jodi Shelkie said police will be recommending numerous charges against a 32-year-old Kamloops man who was previously known to Mounties.
An employee at the Brocklehurst Gemstone Care Centre at 1955 Tranquille Rd. called RCMP at 7:40 a.m. to report an unknown male in the lobby of the building acting in an unusual manner and holding what appeared to be a handgun.
Nearly a dozen police cars were spotted by residents and police asked the public to avoid the area between Desmond Street and Windbreak Street, from Tranquille Road to the Thompson River. Two police dogs were also used.
Eventually, an officer spotted the man and saw him toss the handgun and run away. Officers caught the suspect and took him into custody, recovering a BB gun handgun after a brief search.
Shelkie said the arrest brought the incident to a close.
“The area is now open to the public,” she said.
A number of police vehicles were also seen in the Southills Gardens townhouse complex, at 800 Southill St., though it is not known if that was a staging area or connected in any way to the suspect.
