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Man arrested after shots fired in Victoria, facing attempted murder charge

A man arrested in James Bay on Sunday is facing an attempted murder charge after shots were fired at a vehicle. The man is being held in custody.
Photo - police standoff in Oaklands neighbourhood
Victoria police set up roadblocks in the Oaklands neighbourhood on Sunday. May 21, 2017

A man arrested in James Bay on Sunday is facing an attempted murder charge after shots were fired at a vehicle.

The man is being held in custody. Police are recommending charges of attempted murder, possession of a prohibited weapon, unlawfully discharging a firearm into or at a place, as well as several firearms offences.

A woman called Victoria police around 2:20 a.m. Sunday, saying someone shot at her vehicle in the area of Ryan and Shelbourne streets.

The woman was not injured, but police found a bullet mark on her vehicle.

“The investigation is continuing and will determine the relationship, if any, between the two," Victoria police spokesman Const. Matt Rutherford said.

Rutherford did not say if the shooter was in a vehicle or on foot, or whether a firearm had been recovered.

The incident led to the closing of the 1700 block of Kings Road in the Oaklands neighbourhood for much of Sunday, after officers identified a suspect and surrounded a house associated with him in that block.

The Greater Victoria Emergency Response Team was called in since firearms were involved.

Neighbours in the area said they heard a flash grenade go off in the house around 10 a.m. but no one could be seen coming out. Police continued to shout through a megaphone.

Forensic identification officers, major crime detectives and canine officers were also on scene. When police searched the home, the man they were looking for was not inside.

kderosa@timescolonist.com