A Nanaimo man has been taken into custody after attempting to take a gun from an RCMP officer late December.
According to an RCMP news release, the incident started on December 28th at around 2pm near Promenade Drive. An officer responded to a report of a shoplifter who had thrown items at a Loss Prevention Officer at London Drugs, then threatened the officer with bear spray.
RCMP state the suspect had fled on foot towards the waterfront, where the officer told him he was under arrest. RCMP say after the officer attempted to grab his wrist, the man struggled and attempted to grab the officer’s holstered firearm while threatening to shoot him. A civilian intervened, which reportedly distracted the suspect long enough for a second officer to arrive and subdue him.
“This was an extremely dangerous and volatile situation for the officer,” said Constable Gary O’Brien of the Nanaimo RCMP. “It is also a stark reminder of the dangers that front line officers are faced with. The officer involved is to be commended for staying in the battle, using their training and relying on their physical conditioning to successfully meet the challenge.”
31-year-old Brian Imhoff was arrested assaulting a police officer, attempting to disarm a police officer, and uttering threats. He was later remanded into police custody until his next court appearance on January 4th. Imhoff appeared in court and was remanded into police custody until January 18th.
