Mounties investigating after women report being followed in Comox parks

RCMP are investigating reports about suspicious behaviour in Comox parks – and one of the women who believes she was targeted is sharing her story to raise awareness.

“Almost the entire time I was being followed, I was telling myself I’m probably just imagining it or over-reacting and it’s such a huge lesson: You have to listen to your gut,” she says.

The woman says she was walking with her dog on the trails of MacDonald Wood Park in Comox on Oct. 20, which was a normal route for her – and one that never led to any concern until now. She does not want to be identified as she fears for her safety days later.

“As we passed each other, I noticed out of the side of my eye when we made eye contact something was very, very wrong,” she says.

The woman would eventually run for help. At first she says, she was trying to cast doubt she was being followed around 4 p.m.

“I kept walking for the next few minutes. Every 30 to 60 seconds I would kind of look over my shoulder, but I also didn’t want him to notice that I was looking. I just wanted to not make a scene,” she says.

“He was always just far enough behind me that he could see me and as soon as I would look at him he would kind of sideways dive or hide into the bushes.”

After five or six times of that, she says she started running and was trying to get to an open area so she could find help.

“She looked pretty frightened,” says Dr. Jonathan Kerr.

The Comox councillor and family physician ended up being the first person the woman saw. He was also out with his dog.

“[She] flagged me down and said she felt she was being chased by someone and asked if I could walk her back to her car,” says Kerr. “Naturally, I said yes and I was in the right place at the right time.”

Comox Valley RCMP are investigating.

“Top priority right now is to identify this individual and determine the motive for his behaviour,” says Const. Monika Terragni.

Police say they also have a report from a woman who thought she was being followed at Goose Spit Park nearby on Oct. 11. Officers responded to the area around 4:30 p.m.

Mounties say they’ve also been contacted since the cases have become public.

"It’s certainly possible that they’re related and that’s certainly an avenue that we’re exploring,” says Terragni.

In the report from MacDonald Wood Park, the woman says one more sighting of the man after meeting up with Kerr convinced her she was right to run.

“[Kerr] pointed at the woods and said is that him? And the man was right there,” she says.

Kerr says he saw the person again after escorting the woman to her vehicle – and claims he was acting erratically going in and out of the bushes.

“[It was] hard to tell what was going on if it was a mental health issue or something more sinister,” he says.

The person in that case is described as being roughly 25 years old, with sparse facial hair and lightly coloured hair. He was wearing a baseball cap and a yellow reflective jacket with black pants.

In the Goose Spit report, police say the person is described as a man, roughly 25 years old, six feet tall, with light brown hair, wearing a beige/grey hoodie and black track pants.

People who may have noticed suspicious behaviour in the area recently or who have information about the incidents are asked to call the Comox Valley RCMP at 250-338-1321 and reference file 2023-16776.