A man led police on a chase on land and water after he allegedly crashed a stolen truck, stole a canoe and drifted into Portage Inlet.
It started at 9 a.m. Thursday when West Shore RCMP got a call about a man walking on the concrete barriers on the Trans-Canada Highway near the Old Island Highway overpass. Two persons stopped and tried to talk him off the railing.
He came down, then stole one of their vehicles, a F150 pickup, and sped off. He crashed the truck into a telephone pole at Helmcken Road and the Trans-Canada Highway.
The man left the truck and stole a canoe from a home on Chancellor Avenue. Mounties spotted the man drifting into Portage Inlet, with no paddles to steer the canoe.
From shore, West Shore RCMP officers urged the man to give himself up. He swam to police and taken to hospital where his mental health will be assessed.
“We’ve got a dual procedure. We’ve got mental health concerns and a criminal investigation,” said West Shore RCMP spokeswoman Const. Nancy Saggar.
She thanked View Royal Fire and B.C. Ambulance for their help in apprehending the man.
“The View Royal Fire Department was in the process of deploying their boat into the water when the male gave himself up,” Saggar said.
Police are gathering evidence into the truck theft and crash. Any witnesses are asked to call West Shore RCMP at 250-474-2264 or report anonymously though Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
