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UPDATE: Grenade launcher discovered in hotel room

NANAIMO: Man charged with possession of an explosive device.

A 28-year-old Nanaimo man was charged with unauthorized possession of a firearm and unauthorized possession of an explosive device following the discovery of a grenade launcher in a Terminal Avenue motel Wednesday.

Dustin Derreck Pacheo appeared in Nanaimo provincial court Thursday and was remanded into custody.

Members of the RCMP’s South Island Emergency Response Team entered a room in the Harbourside Motel at 10 a.m. Wednesday, seizing an 45-centimetre grenade launcher that can be attached to a rifle barrel.

Police arrested a 29-year-old female in the room, and Pacheo and a 32-year-old female were arrested a short while later on Comox Road. The two women were later released without charges.

Investigators are still attempting to determine the origin of the launcher.

Police met with officials from the Canadian military Thursday and confirmed the item is not part of their weaponry.

The weapon has not been reported stolen on police databases.

Anyone with information is asked to call Nanaimo RCMP at 250-754-2345, Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477, or online at www.nanaimocrimestoppers.com.