An 18-year-old man was given a fine and had his vehicle impounded for a week after he was caught not once, but twice in the same day stunting in the snow in Nanaimo. (Nanaimo RCMP)

By Jordan Davidson

stunting ticket

‘I just want to be a kid and have fun:’ driver doing donuts at Nanaimo mall gets ticketed

Feb 6, 2025 | 1:59 PM

NANAIMO — A young Nanaimo driver learned the hard way rules of the road apply, even if a fresh blanket of snow piles up in a large parking lot.

On Monday, Feb. 3 around 7:00 p.m., Nanaimo RCMP were called to Nanaimo North Town Centre following complaints of loud vehicles doing donuts and burnouts in the freshly falling snow in the parking lot near Sears.

Speaking with NanaimoNewsNOW, Travis, the 18-year-old driver of the stunting vehicle, said he was at the same spot earlier in the day when the police showed up and told him to move along or risk having his vehicle impounded.

“I didn’t listen, and I just want to be a kid and have fun,” Travis told NanaimoNewsNOW. “All my other friends were up there when it happened. I mean I got a cool photo of me sitting on the hood with the cop right there and the tow truck.”

Travis was issued a $368 ticket under the Motor Vehicle Act for driving without consideration and six demerit points on his license.

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His blue Toyota 4Runner was also impounded for seven days.

While Travis said he learned his lesson, he doesn’t plan on avoiding the area anytime soon.

“I’m gonna keep going back and hanging out there, even though how much the people in the high-rise buildings don’t like it, it’s part of where me and my friends hang out. We enjoy hanging out there.”

Not everyone appreciates the sound of vehicles doing burn outs and donuts in the Sears parking lot of Nanaimo North Town Centre, with residents of nearby buildings phoning police on the stunting 4Runner. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

Nanaimo RCMP Res. Cst. Gary O’Brien said police often start with verbal warnings in situations like this in the hope they don’t have to escalate it further.

“We certainly recognize that 18-year-olds, they have their vehicle, they’re taking advantage of the situation, but often they don’t look at the bigger picture, and it’s our job to intervene. Verbal warnings are a big part of our repertoire. We try to engage with the public, we engaged the drivers, have a dialogue with them, but it didn’t seem to get across this time.”

O’Brien said at such a young age, the driver lacks the experience to know how their vehicle might respond when used in a way it’s not intended to.

“There’s no regard for their safety and the two passengers on board. They may thought it was fun at one point, but if that vehicle rolls we’re talking a very tragic situation. They could have smashed into a pole, they could have hit any other vehicles attending. It could have been a bad situation, so hopefully, it won’t happen again.”

He said neighbours who live near the mall routinely call police for complaints of loud vehicles and stunting in the mall parking lot, regardless of the time of year.

O’Brien said he’s been informed Travis was apologetic to officers following the second incident.

While it was all quiet the afternoon of Thursday, Feb. 6, tire tracks in the snow tell a different story. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

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