One person has been charged after he allegedly rammed a police vehicle with a stolen car before crashing it into a ditch in Nanaimo.
According to police, an alert RCMP officer was patrolling in the Cedar area at about 1:25 p.m Wednesday when he observed an older-model Honda Civic being driven erratically. The member alerted other officers, but due to the risk the erratic driving presented to the public, he did not attempt to stop the Honda, which was later determined to have been stolen just days earlier, as were the licence plates attached to it.
By 1:30 pm, a Nanaimo Street Crimes Unit officer spotted the Civic still being driven dangerously in the area of Ninth Street. The officer placed his unmarked vehicle with his emergency equipment activated, across the street to try and stop the Civic, but instead of stopping, the driver appeared to accelerate and drive directly at the police vehicle and rammed into its front grille, causing significant front-end damage. The stolen Honda continued until it drove across a lawn, then over a curb and finally flipped onto its driver’s side in a ditch on Park Avenue a few moments later.
READ ALSO: Old Honda Civics, Accords among top stolen cars in Vancouver
Brandon Sharp, 30, of Nanaimo, was arrested at the scene on suspicion of numerous criminal code and Motor Vehicle Act charges.
Brandon Sharp, 30, of Nanaimo, was arrested at the scene on suspicion of numerous criminal code and Motor Vehicle Act charges.
Two women were also removed from the vehicle and were arrested along with Sharp, but were later released unconditionally.
Sharp appeared in provincial court in Nanaimo on Thursday on charges that included two counts of possession of stolen property, dangerous driving and breach of probation. He was then released from custody and is scheduled to make his next court appearance Feb. 11.
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