There was a heavy police presence in a small community north of Campbell River Friday night.
RCMP got called to a home in the 1000-block of Sayward Road, which is near the Village of Sayward.
Officials said it was was 8 p.m. on Friday night when police got a call from a family member of a distraught man inside the house.
When officers arrived they heard multiple shots being fired.
They quickly called the Emergency Response Team (ERT), which came from different parts of Vancouver Island. Within two hours, the team arrived and a negotiator started talking to the man. Eventually, at 2 a.m. Saturday morning, the ERT shot tear gas into the house and the man came out on his own.
Police arrested him and he’s now facing charges of uttering threats, careless use or storage of a firearm and some firearms offences.
Police say the suspect is in his late 40s and they arrested him under the Mental Health Act.
Court records show Shawn Michael Sinclair took part in a tele-bail hearing with a justice of the peace and will remain in custody until a court hearing Monday in Campbell River.
A police presence remained at the home until Saturday night as investigators processed the scene.
They seized several firearms.
Family members were cleaning up at the home Sunday didn’t want to discuss what happened.
Police say this was a very unusual incident for the area but say fortunately no one was injured.
Kendall Hanson
