After a five-hour standoff which ended with tear gas, a Salmo man with two outstanding warrants was arrested in a Shuswap RV park on Tuesday.
According to a media release issued by Sicamous Sgt. Murray McNeil, on March 21 around 10 a.m., Sicamous RCMP attempted to arrest 55-year-old Jeffrey Dean Smith outside his RV in a Malakwa RV park.
The man ignored police requests and went inside his trailer. Police then attempted to negotiate but the man refused to come out. Sgt. McNeil said police were concerned for officers’ safety and the safety of the public in the RV park as one of the man’s warrants involved a firearms offence.
Sicamous RCMP were joined by Salmon Arm officers, making sure the area was contained and nearby RVs were vacated. The South East District Emergency Response Team from Kelowna arrived to assist with arresting the barricaded man.
Many people throughout the region reported on social media seeing several police vehicles with lights flashing heading east along Highway 1.
At 3 p.m., about five hours after the standoff began, ERT members used tear gas to flush the man out of the RV and he was arrested. Several residents of the park were unable to return to their RVs during the standoff.
Smith was taken to a cell at the Salmon Arm RCMP detachment. He was set to appear before a judge on March 22 for a scheduled bail hearing.
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