A Campbell River man found himself in a scary situation on Saturday, May 17 after it was reported that he had been handling a pistol in the parking lot of the Campbell River Walmart.

The RCMP caught up with the man and removed him from his vehicle in the parking lot of the Home Depot. In the end, it turned out the pistol had been a newly purchased BB gun that the man just could not wait to unwrap. Once it was clear there was no threat, the man was free to go on his way, a little shaken from a multi-officer response.

鈥淯nfortunately, these kinds of occurrences are a little too common,鈥� responding officer Const. Maury Tyre said. 鈥� These BB and pellet pistols are designed to look like the real thing. Members of the public and police cannot tell them apart at first glance and it can create some very dangerous situations. We have had reports of people waving handguns around out of the windows of their cars or using an imitation to threaten people with. The response of officers will be as if the firearm is real because until we get our hands on it, we can鈥檛 tell for sure. We have to act as if every weapons call is legitimate to ensure the public鈥檚 safety and our safety.鈥�

The Campbell River RCMP recommend that if you are the proud owner of a BB or pellet gun you treat it as you would any other firearm. Lock it up, safely transport it, and only use it in a safe location.

If you would like to report a crime, call the Campbell River RCMP at 250-286-6221 or call 911 in an emergency.

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