The Canadian Press
Linda Givetash
ABBOTSFORD, B.C.–A British Columbia police officer is being remembered as a “hero” after he died yesterday in an exchange of gunfire with a man accused of shooting at people in a parking lot.
Chief Bob Rich of the Abbotsford Police Department said officers were called about a possible stolen vehicle in the parking lot of a shopping complex around 11:30 a.m.
The caller blocked the suspect’s vehicle in while waiting for police to arrive, Rich noted.
“Unfortunately, a male suspect emerged from that vehicle and began shooting at the caller and others with a shotgun,” Rich said at a news conference.
There were several 9-1-1 calls reporting the shooting, and police officers arrived in the area and tried to engage with and arrest the suspect.
“There was an exchange of gunfire,” Rich noted, adding one officer was taken to hospital with “very serious injuries.”
“The horrible part of this story, our injured APD officer, was pronounced dead at the hospital shortly after he arrived.”
The suspect, a man in his 60s from Alberta, fled in the vehicle and police officers pursued him to the intersection of Mt. Lehman Road and Fraser Highway, Rich said.
The man was apprehended and taken to hospital for treatment of non-life threatening injuries.
The deceased officer’s name has not been released.
Rich said the investigation will continue and there still are many questions left to be answered.
He noted the police department’s priority will be supporting the officer’s family and each other.
He said he met with the officer’s spouse and delivered the “horrible news face-to-face.”
“Our officers’ actions today, all of them, were absolutely heroic,” Rich stressed. “There were officers heroically trying to save the life of our member.
“There were officers immediately taking control of the scene.
“When they responded to this, they responded in a way that was designed to protect the public,” Rich added.
“This person was trying to kill people, members of the public, and our officers responded.
“The officer who gave his life today is a hero,” Rich stressed. “He was protecting this community.
“He will always be my hero.”
An employee at a nearby vehicle dealership said the fatal shooting is connected to a sports car that allegedly was stolen over the weekend.
George MacDonald, a manager at MSA Ford in Abbotsford, said a man came in to test drive a Mustang around 9 a.m. on Saturday and drove off without leaving his driver’s licence.
Shortly before noon yesterday, a dealership employee noticed the vehicle parked about 400 metres away at a restaurant, MacDonald said.
“One of my guys blocked the car in until the Abbotsford police came and before the police came, the guy came back with a rifle and decided he wanted the car back,” MacDonald added.
“The truck took two or three bullet holes.”
MacDonald said he left to return a key to the dealership minutes before the shooting took place.
“I did 20 years in the military but I’m not used to anything like that happening this close to home,” he noted.
The Independent Investigations Office, which looks at all officer-related incidents that result in serious harm or death, sent its investigators to the scene.
The office said it’s believed the suspect was shot.
Premier John Horgan issued a statement on Twitter expressing his condolences to the family of the police officer.
