New Delhi: Canadian police killed two gunmen during a shootout at a bank in British Columbia, wounding six officers and evacuating nearby homes after discovering a possible explosive device.
Law enforcement said members of the emergency response team arrived at the scene at the Bank of Montreal in Sanich, on Vancouver Island, near the border with the US state of Washington, around 11 a.m. (1800 GMT).
“This remains an ongoing police incident with heavy police presence in the area,” according to a statement posted by the Sanich, British Columbia, police on their website.
“Due to the presence of a potentially explosive device in the vehicle belonging to the suspects, homes and businesses near the site of the incident have been evacuated,” he said.
Later, police said they were removing the shelter-in-place order, but the block near the bank remained closed due to a possible bomb.
Sanich Police Chief Dean Duthie said at a news conference that the suspects were “heavily armed” and that initial reports suggest they were wearing body armor. He said that he did not have any further information about him.
Six officers were taken to hospital with bullet injuries.
“At this time we anticipate that some officers will be released after emergency treatment, while other officers have very serious injuries and have been taken to surgery,” he said.
first published:June 29, 2022, 9:52 am
