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Kelowna woman’s fake gun lands her in real trouble with Vernon police

Police have a duty to assume a fake firearm is real until proven otherwise, says Const. Chris Terleski
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(RCMP photo)

A Kelowna woman was arrested after a weapons report led to a large police presence in downtown Vernon Wednesday afternoon.

Police received a report April 21 from a person who said a woman had just pointed a handgun at her in the 1500 block of 32nd Street. The suspect, who was driving a small green car, had stopped at the side of the road and was throwing items out of the passenger side onto the roadway and into the ditch, the victim told police.

The suspect noticed the victim was looking at her and produced what appeared to be a black handgun out of the vehicle, allegedly pointing it at her, before getting back in her vehicle and driving off southbound into Vernon.

Moments later, around 5 p.m., the car was spotted by a Vernon North Okanagan RCMP officer at 32nd Street and 25th Avenue. Police stopped and contained the vehicle and driver, and the lone occupant was safely arrested without incident.

Investigators seized a small black BB gun while searching the vehicle.

In a dynamic and unfolding situation like this involving a potential weapon, we respond according to information available to us at the time, and not after the fact, said Const. Chris Terleski, media relations officer for the Vernon RCMP, in a press release Thursday.

To ensure public and police safety, we treat all firearms as real and loaded, until we prove otherwise.

The 35-year-old Kelowna woman remains in custody as the investigation continues.

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Brendan Shykora
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Brendan Shykora

About the Author: Brendan Shykora

I started as a carrier at the age of 8. In 2019 graduated from the Master of Journalism program at Carleton University.
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