Nanaimo RCMP are seeking the public’s help after a man allegedly assaulted a clerk at James General Store on Victoria Road on Jan. 18. (Submitted photo)

Suspect screams at customer then assaults store clerk in Nanaimo

RCMP asking for information about Jan. 18 incident at James General Store

  • Jan. 20, 2021 12:00 a.m.

A store clerk suffered black eyes after a scuffle with a suspect who was yelling at a customer outside a store in Nanaimo’s south end earlier this week.

According to a Nanaimo RCMP press release, the incident took place at James General Store on Victoria Road at 6:40 p.m. Monday, when police responded to a hold-up alarm activation by an employee who had been assaulted.

The worker told police the suspect had caught his attention after he heard the suspect screaming at a customer just outside the store’s front door. The man apparently was demanding the customer give him cigarettes.

After the worker told the suspect to stop yelling and leave the premises, the man charged at the employee and assaulted him. The employee suffered cuts and lacerations to his face, with two black eyes, and while he was shaken, he did not require medical attention.

Police say they searched the area but didn’t locate the suspect.

Based on store surveillance footage, the suspect is described as Caucasian, approximately six feet tall with a slim build and blond hair. He was seen wearing sunglasses and a distinctive black and white Rcklss hoodie.

Anyone with information on the suspect’s identity or the incident is asked to call Nanaimo RCMP’s non-emergency line at 250-754-2345 quote file No. 2021-2134.

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