Three suspects were arrested by police at gunpoint in Nanaimo after they were spotted in a stolen car Tuesday.
According to police, the incident unfolded at about 8 a.m. after RCMP received a report a car had been stolen from the driveway of a residence in central Nanaimo.
An RCMP member on patrol spotted the car on Bowen Road, confirmed the licence plate matched the stolen vehicle, reversed direction and caught up with the car at the Dufferin Crescent intersection where it was stopped in traffic.
The officer positioned his vehicle to block the occupants from escaping out the stolen car’s passenger side and because he was alone, drew his service pistol while arresting the car’s three occupants.
“Effecting an arrest of an unknown subject from a stolen vehicle can be a high-risk scenario,” said Sgt. Jon Stuart, Nanaimo RCMP spokesman, in a press release. “Until the risks are known, each situation is treated as high risk until it is known to be otherwise. In this case, there were three unknown persons.”
Tyler Walter Orenchuk, 33, of Nanaimo, who was allegedly driving the stolen vehicle, appeared in provincial court in Nanaimo on Wednesday and was charged with possession of property obtained by crime under $5,000 and driving while prohibited.
The other two vehicle occupants were released without charge.
