It was a Remembrance Day to forget for a pair of Vernon sisters.
Laura Duncan and her sister had enjoyed a lengthy lunch at the Village Green Shopping Centre Wednesday, Nov. 11, eating and chatting.
Just after 3:30 p.m., as Duncan was returning her sister to her vehicle parked at the main east entrance to The Bay, Duncan said, ‘Oh-oh, you’ve got a flat tire.’
Then Duncan discovered another flat tire on the same driver’s side of her sister’s vehicle. Both tires on the Chevrolet Tahoe SUV had been punctured deliberately, and spit greeted the sister on the driver’s side window.
The Tahoe had a Saskatchewan licence plate. It’s believed no other vehicles in the vicinity were damaged.
Duncan’s sister lives in Vernon on a property with her parents, both in their late 70s, who sometimes drive that vehicle for their errands. The sister pays taxes in Vernon.
“My sister took it personally, but what got me is somebody is walking around Vernon policing the city by themselves, and they’re carrying a weapon,” said Duncan.
There was no video surveillance and mall security responded to Duncan’s call in a matter of minutes. A friend of Duncan’s also happened on the scene. What happened to Duncan’s sister made everyone angry.
“Everybody was so apologetic, saying ‘sorry this happened to you,’ and we were all really undone by this,” said Duncan. “It’s not very Canadian.”
Duncan said the shopping centre had been busy for a holiday Wednesday with the parking lot full of cars when they arrived at around 1 p.m. When they returned, the sister’s vehicle was in an area where there were two-or-three other vehicles nearby.
The group waited with Duncan and her sister as a tow truck arrived to take the car away from the scene. The sisters notified RCMP of the incident.
“That’s the thing that sticks with me. My dad, sister, cousin, niece, friend, the mall cop, my brother-in-law, we worked as a team after this,” said Duncan. “That overshadows the crap of what happened.”
Vernon-North Okanagan RCMP media relations officer Chris Terleski said Thursday, Nov. 12, that RCMP received a report of damage to a vehicle in the 4900 block of 27th Street. No suspects have been identified, he said, and the investigation is continuing.
The Morning Star has reached out to the shopping centre for more information.
This story has been updated as of 1:40 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 12
READ MORE: ‘Go home’: Alberta-registered vehicles vandalized in B.C. border town amid COVID-19
READ MORE: Revelstoke woman finds welcoming letter on her Alberta-registered truck
@VernonNewsroger@vernonmorningstar.comLike us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.
