A man allegedly armed with an axe and hammer was beaten back with a cane by a senior and then had to be tasered by police.
An 84-year-old homeowner called 9-1-1 after someone tried to break into her home in the 1000 block of 30th Ave., July 4, shortly before 5 a.m.
The resident said someone had just broken the window of their front door and was attempting to gain access by reaching through the broken window to unlock the door from the inside.
The homeowner managed to prevent the suspect from gaining entry to her home by hitting the man on his hands with her cane, but he was able to get keys and gained entry into the attached garage.
Police quickly arrived at the residence and found the suspect male still in the garage. Reportedly armed with an axe and a hammer, the suspect male became combative towards the officers.
“The officers attempted to negotiate with the male to drop the weapons, however, he allegedly made it clear that he wasn’t going to jail and would do anything to prevent that,” said Const. Kelly Brett.
The officers then used a Taser in an effort to stop the suspect. However, they deployed the device twice as the male continued to fight with police.
“The actions of the man clearly could have resulted in serious injuries to himself, the victim, or our officers,” says Acting Operations Officer, Sgt. Tory Romailer. “We commend our officers for their quick response and ability to resolve a violent situation safely.”
A 34-year-old Vernon man, who has since been identified as Justin Inverarity, was taken into custody and charged with break and enter, attempted theft of a motor vehicle, mischief, assault and breach of probation. Inverarity is being held in custody until his scheduled court appearance Thursday, July 12.
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