The identities have been released of two suspects alleged to have rammed police during a pursuit on Blackwater Road last week. Police are also now disclosing that there was gunfire discharged by one of the Mounties involved.
"I can't tell you how many shots were fired, what was hit if anything, what was going through the officer's mind because all that is still under investigation by North District [RCMP regional headquarters]," said Prince George RCMP spokesman Cpl. Craig Douglass. "We can say only that a weapon was discharged at a time another officer was in jeopardy, that has been verified, and we can say that nobody was hurt as a result of any part of that incident."
The series of events have led to charges against two Prince George men: Keith Christopher Lundy, 33, and Ian Vernon Cooper, 26. Both face multiple allegations coming out of the incident on Oct. 6 that started with a reported theft of firearms and other items from a home in the West Lake area.
The police investigation brought their suspicions to a pair of men in a pickup travelling on the Blackwater Road.
"At approximately 3 p.m., police located the suspects in a 1991 Chevrolet S-10 pickup," said Douglass. "An officer in a marked police car attempted to pull over the suspect vehicle, but the vehicle did not stop. A road block was set up along Blackwater Road. The vehicle approached the road block at a high rate of speed, directly towards an officer. Witnessing this, a second officer discharged his sidearm. The first officer had to dive into the ditch to avoid being struck."
A brief pursuit continued, ending on Highway 16 near Haldi Road. Two suspects abandoned the pickup and ran into the bush. Lundy and Cooper were located soon after by police and are alleged to be the two suspects.
A search of the pickup turned up a number of allegedly stolen items, including guns. Some are believed to be traceable to the break-and-enter near West Lake and other rural properties in the vicinity.
Douglass said court proceedings are now underway for the two suspects, both of them local residents. Also, a set of RCMP-mandated protocols were automatically initiated to look into the circumstances of the police officer shooting his gun.
