Police have confirmed that the suspects being sought in a Friday manhunt are believed to have been involved in a drive-by shooting in Sooke this week.
The extensive search in the large wooded area around Thetis Lake was unsuccessful, West RCMP said. Joshua Nickolas Lafleur, suspected gunman in the Sooke case, and another man whose name has not been released remain at large.
Dustin David Brown was arrested Wednesday in connection with the Sooke shooting. He has been charged with two counts of attempted murder using a firearm. Brown is to appear in Western Communities provincial court on Tuesday morning.
It is now safe to go to Thetis Lake Regional Park after it was closed yesterday, police said, but they ask the public to be aware of their surroundings and report suspicious activity.
The search for the two armed and dangerous suspects was scaled back in Highlands late Friday afternoon.
Police first searched around Lost Lake Road in Highlands. Area residents were advised to stay in their homes and lock their doors.
The search had moved to Thetis Lake, where heavily armed police officers had sealed off the area with yellow police tape. Police officers asked hikers, picnickers and sunbathers to leave the popular park. Officers dressed in camouflage searched the trails on foot with the help of dogs for most of the day while an RCMP helicopter circled overhead.
The park was reopened after being closed for most of the afternoon.
The search began Friday morning after police went to a home on Lost Lake Road and two men fled out the back. They were wearing dark clothing. One man was wearing white shoes, the other was barefoot.
“We’re following up on tips from the public who may have seen people matching the description as the search continues,” Bérubé said. “We are concentrating on the upper Thetis Lake area.”
Searchers faced a “challenging” environment, Bérubé said. The 834-hectare park is rugged, hilly and heavily wooded, and connects with other wilderness areas.
Victoria and Saanich police officers were part of the response, along with the RCMP Emergency Response Team.
Police did not confirm reports that a bag containing two guns and marijuana was found near power lines.
Eagle View, Millstream and Lakewood elementary schools, in the vicinity of the park, kept students inside with the doors locked as a precaution during the afternoon. Sooke school district superintendent Jim Cambridge said he was taking direction from police.
Locking the schools was part of a “hold and secure” procedure, requested by police, that is used when there is a risk in the community. Children were not allowed to walk home alone at the end of classes, and were kept at schools until parents could pick them up. For students taking buses, parents were asked to meet them at the bus stop.
Be Wilson, who lives close to the eastern edge of the park, had her three grandchildren with her and was staying inside with the doors locked.
“We had planned on playing outside,” she said.
Having a police search going on so close to home was strange, Wilson said. “It’s manageable and we always think optimistically, but you never know.”
Millstream Road resident Pam Martin said she and her husband heard from friends about the police warning to stay inside. They knew something was up when they heard police sirens and some of the dogs at their boarding kennel began to howl, she said.
Martin said she wasn’t in “panic mode” about the situation. Having dogs on the property provided reassurance, she said.
“I think that would keep anybody away from here because it would sound an alarm.”
She said her husband saw two officers getting out of a police vehicle and putting on protective gear while he was tending to the recycling at the roadside.
“We’re just slightly around the bend from Lost Lake Road, which is where the big focus was.”
Martin said they stuck to their back deck as the police activity was going on.
Yvette Patchett said she and a friend realized something was happening when they were out for a walk at Thetis Lake. Lots of people were paddling and swimming when they started their walk, “but there was nobody on the beach when we got back.”
Will Stringer, who was at Thetis Lake to walk dogs, said he was asked to leave the park by a Capital Regional District staff member. He said he wasn’t nervous about being in the park. “If they come across me, that’s their problem. I have four dogs with me,” said Stringer, who posted a Facebook message telling his friends he got kicked out of Thetis and was going to enjoy the sun elsewhere.
Highlands Mayor Ken Williams said he has fielded many calls from concerned residents.
He said there are a number of trails going from the Lost Lake area to Thetis Lake. “We’re all doing everything possible to notify residents to stay indoors, stay locked, be aware this is happening. We want everybody to be aware of the danger.”
Williams said the search is in good hands. “I have great faith in the RCMP.”
Anyone with information to help with the search can contact West Shore RCMP at 250-474-2264 or 1-800-222-TIPS.
