By Dominic Abassi

Nanaimo man carjacked at gunpoint in driveway

Sep 13, 2016 | 4:42 PM

NANAIMO — A wild scene in Nanaimo Tuesday, involving what police believe was a random carjacking at gunpoint.

Nanaimo RCMP Sgt. Sheryl Armstrong says a man pulled into his driveway on Merlin Street, near the north-end of Jingle Pot Road, around 11:30 a.m. Tuesday.

As he did, Armstrong says, a man wearing a mask and carrying a gun jumped into the truck and the two men began fighting.

She says during the long battle, the truck actually drove into the house causing some damage.

Armstrong says after the two fell out of the truck, the man in the mask finally got free, jumped back into the vehicle and took off.

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“Maintaining a safe distance, unmarked police vehicles followed the truck south on the Trans Canada Highway. When the driver pulled into the parking lot behind the Ruckledge Store on Morden Road, he was arrested,” says Armstrong.

The situation wasn’t a high-speed chase, according to Armstrong, noting the man didn’t even know he was being followed because the decision was made to use unmarked police cars and stay back at a safe distance.

A 35-year-old man, who Armstrong says is well-known to police and lives in different areas around B.C., was arrested.

She says the gun involved turned out to be fake.

Police believe at this point this was a random carjacking, with Armstrong saying there is no known relationship between the two men.

“That’s how we’re looking at it right now, but we’re still in the very infancy stages of the investigation.”

The man suffered a dog bite during the arrest, but Armstrong says he wasn’t badly injured and it’s her understanding the Independent Investigations Office won’t be called in.

As for trying to fight off a man with a gun, it’s not something RCMP ever recommend.

“Possessions are not worth your life. In this case, it turned out very lucky for this man, but you never know what wouldn’t have happened if that was a real firearm.”