A man facing several attempted murder charges after a dramatic police chase Dec. 3 west of Falkland has a criminal record that dates back more five years.
On Tuesday, Darwyn Sellars, was arrested after he allegedly fired shots at police following a vehicle stop where a police spike belt was used near Westwold.
The 31-year-old was charged with six counts of attempted murder with a firearm, possession of a firearm and two counts of flight from police.
The incident shut down Highway 97 for several hours.
“RCMP officers controlled access to the highway and strategically set up roadblocks in an attempt to safely stop the vehicle,” Vernon North Okanagan RCMP media relations officer Const. Jocelyn Noseworthy said.
“The driver failed to stop for police and allegedly fired shots from the vehicle as it fled from our officers, posing a serious risk to public safety.”
The suspects’ vehicle was stopped behind Westwold Community Church and Highway 97. One witnesses said around 19 shots were fired during the incident.
Jennifer Patricia Singleton, 38, was also arrested at the scene and is facing multiple charges.
On Nov. 4, Williams Lake RCMP issued a warrant for Sellars arrest for firearms-related charges, resisting a peace officer and failing to comply with his release conditions.
Four years earlier in 2015, Sellars was sentenced to 321 days in jail for similar charges, according to court records and a 100 Mile Free Press report.
Upon his release, he faced a year of probation, a two-year licence suspension and a 10-year firearms prohibition.
READ MORE: Two charged with attempted murder in Westwold incident
READ MORE: Highway re-opens after police incident near Falkland
A Facebook profile matching Sellars, who is described by Crime Stoppers as an Indigenous male with short black hair and a scar on his lip, features selfies with photo edited guns and others with handfuls of cash. On Aug. 5, a post reads “I’m coming home boiz…(sic)” above a meme that reads, “If you want to know who your friends are, get yourself a jail sentence.”
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