A Nanaimo RCMP dog handler and his service dog were struck in the face with a blast of bear spray when a suspect tried to avoid arrest.
According to an RCMP press release, the incident happened at about 7 p.m. Saturday near Metral Drive and Pleasant Valley Way in north Nanaimo after police were called to deal with a suspected shoplifter at Woodgrove Centre.
The suspect had fled by the time police arrived at the shopping centre, but a short time later a report came in the same man had just committed a break and enter at a home on Metral Drive.
When police tried to arrest the suspect, he allegedly shot bear-spray into the faces of one officer and a service dog. In spite of the effects of the bear-spray, the Mountie and his dog managed to overpower the suspect and take him into custody.
The 30-year-old suspect suffered minor injuries during the arrest and was taken to Nanaimo Regional General Hospital where he received several stitches before being taken to cells at Nanaimo RCMP detachment.
“He was obviously high on drugs. He was acting irrationally and was an extreme concern to the public,” said Const. Gary O’Brien, Nanaimo RCMP spokesman. “Our officers effectively dealt with this individual and in doing so got into a violent confrontation with him. At the end of the day, there’s one less individual the public has to concern themselves with.”
The suspect remains in custody for charges of assaulting a police officer, possession of a weapon, theft under $5,000, break and enter, possession of a controlled substance and two counts of breach of probation. The suspect’s name is being withheld until charges are formally sworn by a Nanaimo provincial court judge.