One person is dead after reports of shots fired at Rock City Centre in Nanaimo.
A heavy police presence gathered outside the Wendysa国际传媒檚 restaurant at the plaza along the old Island highway at about 3:30 p.m. Thursday, May 20. Witnesses reported hearing shots fired.
Nanaimo RCMP spokesman Const. Gary Osa国际传媒橞rien confirmed one person died in the incident from apparent gunshot wounds and sa国际传媒渟everalsa国际传媒� individuals were arrested.
sa国际传媒淲esa国际传媒檙e not sure whether we have everybody involved in custody,sa国际传媒� said Osa国际传媒橞rien. sa国际传媒淚tsa国际传媒檚 a very dynamic situation. We have officers at various scenes throughout the city.sa国际传媒�
He said there is no danger to the public at this point.
The Best Western Northgate hotel was secured while officers searched for forensic evidence related to the investigation. A vehicle was seized that was associated with the individuals who were arrested.
Lee Marstein, who lives near Rock City Centre, was using her mobility scooter near the shooting scene when it happened.
sa国际传媒淛ust as I was coming around the corner I hear pop, pop, pop, pop, pop and then pop and then I see the white vehicle come screaming out of [the parking lot], didnsa国际传媒檛 even bother stopping to take a look a traffic and took off,sa国际传媒� she said.
Marstein said she heard gun shots in the area a few days earlier and found a bullet casing nearby, which she reported to the police.
She said the vehicle that sped out of Rock City Plaza was a white SUV and it was shortly after that she saw glass on the ground from the victimsa国际传媒檚 vehicle.
sa国际传媒淎nd then the RCMP started showing up,sa国际传媒� she said. sa国际传媒淭hey opened the back door of the vehicle sa国际传媒� Isa国际传媒檓 going, oh, maybe theysa国际传媒檙e looking for gunshots in the back seat, not thinking that there was a person in there.sa国际传媒�
Adrienne Perron, manager of the Sherwinn-Williams paint store, was working when she heard three shots.
sa国际传媒淭hen two black SUVs sa国际传媒� full SWAT sa国际传媒� just circled in and blocked in that car,sa国际传媒� she said.
Perron said it seemed like only seconds after the shots were fired that police showed up.
sa国际传媒淚t happened fast,sa国际传媒� she said. sa国际传媒淲e saw people scattering. Cars were kind of coming in to see what was going on sa国际传媒� and then we could see that they were draping all that yellow tarp around that vehicle.sa国际传媒�
Perron said she was shaken by the incident.
sa国际传媒淚tsa国际传媒檚 been getting pretty sketchy here. I open by myself sometimes,sa国际传媒� she said. sa国际传媒淲esa国际传媒檝e got three access points to the store and theresa国际传媒檚 three people with guns running around somewhere. That freaks me out.sa国际传媒�
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