Drug Addict Gets Tazed Twice, Still Attacks Cops With Hatchet

Several Kamloops RCMP cruisers raced to the transit exchange on the North Shore on Friday morning to help colleagues dealing with a man threatening officers with a hatchet. Cpl. Jodi Shelkie said the drama unfolded at 10:30 a.m. when two Mounties were patrolling the bus loop next to Northills Shopping Centre. The officers had been told two men were drinking alcohol at the exchange and they told the pair consumption of booze in a public place is illegal. “One of the men was co-operative,” Shelkie said. “However, one became belligerent with the officers and started aggressively yelling at them.” The man then pulled a hatchet from his backpack and began swinging it at the Mounties, which prompted one officer to use a Taser to subdue the man, to no avail. Shelkie said the man continued to swing the hatchet at the cops until one officer used pepper spray, which led to the man dropping the weapon. He then ran into the mall, where a third officer again used a Taser, which managed to subdue the suspect. “Any time a police officer must arrest a violent person, it is a potentially dangerous situation”, Shelkie said. “But in this case, where the violent person is in a very public place and other citizens could be injured, it is especially dangerous. Luckily, the officers were able to take the suspect into custody without the safety of any bystanders being compromised.” A 29-year-old man is in custody, with several charges pending.