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Man wielding sword arrested after robbing Sooke liquor store

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Sooke RCMP say a man brandishing a two-foot-long sword was arrested after robbing a liquor store on Sunday.

The incident occurred around 5:30 p.m. at a liquor store in the 6800-block of West Coast Road.

Liquor store employees told police that a man had entered the store and grabbed three bottles of wine. When the man went to exit the store, staff tried to stop him from leaving, at which point the man pulled out a two-foot sword and "swung it at employees" before fleeing.

The workers then called 911 and decided to follow the man from a distance while inside of a car.

Police say the workers were able to give officers updates on the man's location, until officers arrived to arrest him in the 6900-block of West Coast Road.

When Mounties arrived, police say officers spoke with the man, who initially refused to comply with police orders. Eventually, the man was taken into custody, and officers reportedly found the sword and stolen wine on his person.

RCMP say no one was harmed throughout the course of the incident. The Sooke RCMP detachment says it's grateful for the actions of liquor store staff, though police note that they do not recommend following suspects unless it is absolutely safe to do so.

"This was a dangerous situation that fortunately resulted in the safe arrest of the suspect by police without anyone being hurt," said Sgt. Kevin Shaw, sergeant in charge of operations at the Sooke RCMP detachment.

"In situations like these, we always recommend to call the police immediately and then, only if safe to do so, provide us with updates of the suspect from a safe place," he said Tuesday. "As evidenced here, what appears to be a minor incident can rapidly turn violent without warning. That’s what we are here to deal with."

Police say the man is now facing a recommended charge of robbery.

Anyone with additional information on the incident is asked to call Sooke RCMP at 250-642-5241 or contact Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477.

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