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Nanaimo RCMP seize guns, make arrests during downtown blitz

An RCMP vehicle in downtown Nanaimo. (CTV News) An RCMP vehicle in downtown Nanaimo. (CTV News)
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Mounties in Nanaimo say two guns were seized and multiple charges were laid following a three-hour proactive policing blitz in the city's downtown core over the weekend.

A 32-year-old woman who is known to police and was wanted for an assault in 2022 was arrested and taken to Nanaimo RCMP cells after she was spotted in the vestibule of a bank shortly after 1 a.m. Saturday.

An hour later, an officer saw a driver ignore a stop sign and then drive through a red light, the Nanaimo RCMP said in a release Tuesday.

The 24-year-old driver was pulled over and showed "strong symptoms of alcohol impairment," according to the release.

The driver was given a 90-day roadside prohibition and his vehicle was impounded.

An officer in the 1000-block of Terminal Avenue pulled over a vehicle around 3:15 a.m. after he noticed the car’s rear window was completely covered with tin foil, according to police.

The officer noticed a large knife beside the driver, as well as four or five cellphones and several small baggies suspected of containing drugs, police said.

The driver was arrested and a search of the vehicle turned up a sawed-off shotgun and a rifle in the backseat.

The 29-year-old driver is facing numerous drug and firearms charges, police said.

"Throughout the evening our officers commented that a number of people who were walking or driving by would shout out supportive comments to them, acknowledging their efforts in keeping them safe," Nanaimo RCMP spokesperson Const. Gary O'Brien said.

"These spontaneous gestures did not go unnoticed and were well received by our officers."

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