The owner of a car parked in downtown Nanaimo was threatened at knife point when he confronted a man accused of breaking into his car on the weekend.
The incident happened Sunday at about 1:35 a.m. when the victim went to pick up his car in the Bastion Street Parkade and found a man in the front seat rifling through papers.
The suspect pulled a knife from his pocket and threatened the owner when he confronted him and tried to pull him out of the car.
The owner backed off, but two of his friends ran up Skinner Street to get help and found two Mounties, who ran to the scene. They radioed the suspect's description to other officers, who caught the suspect the next level up in the parkade a minute after the broadcast went out.
RCMP Bike Unit members arrested the suspect and found the knife allegedly used in the crime.
The driver's side window of the car was pried open and some of the trim removed during the break-in. Damage to the car is estimated at $500.
Sgt. Sheryl Armstrong, Nanaimo RCMP spokeswoman, said the suspect, 43, of no fixed address, is known to police.
He was held in custody to appear in Nanaimo provincial court Monday.