Thursday, March 28, 2024

Nanaimo RCMP arrest man making fake 9-1-1 calls

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A man making numerous 9-1-1 calls to Nanaimo RCMP, which locked one school down, has been arrested.

On Thursday afternoon, October 21st, a single caller stated to RCMP officers that shots were being fired at a local school resulting in multiple casualties.

The caller did not provide the specifics of the school but told officers where in the five block radius of the area in south Nanaimo that the alleged shots were coming from.

Police notified the two schools in the area—Fairview Elementary and Nanaimo and District Secondary School (NDSS)—of the alleged threat.

NDSS was immediately placed in a lock down. Staff at Fairview advised police that students were dismissed early and there were no concerns at their location.

Nothing was reported at NDSS either.

Officers suspected the calls were a hoax and pivoted their investigation to find the source of the fake calls.

RCMP said that using cell phone technology and police databases, the North Island Operations Communication Centre (OCC) traced the location of the phone, and determined who the phone was registered to and what vehicles were associated with the suspect.

At approximately 2 p.m. that same afternoon, officers located the 34-year-old suspect in his vehicle, parked along Howard Avenue, and arrested him for Public Mischief and Breach of pre-existing conditions from previous police files.

The lockdown at NDSS was lifted when officers arrested the suspect.

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