A large police presence surrounded a Saanich property Thursday morning (July 10).
Shortly after 9 a.m., numerous Saanich police cruisers, unmarked vehicles, and heavily armed members of the Greater Victoria Public Safety Unit were seen at 4401 Chatterton Way.
According to a news release, Saanich Police responded to a report of a break-and-enter in progress. Officers from the patrol division, the K9 unit, and the Greater Victoria Emergency Response Team (GVERT) arrived on scene and set up containment around the home.
Police determined that two individuals were inside the lower part of the residence. Just before 10 a.m., one of them exited and surrendered to officers without incident.
The second individual, however, refused to comply with police instructions to leave the home, prompting the situation to be treated as a mental health barricade. At 12:40 p.m., officers entered the residence and took the person into custody without incident. They were apprehended under the Mental Health Act and transported to hospital for care.
Holli Rockerbie, treasurer of the Victoria Seventh-day Adventist Church, told Saanich News that the church owns the property and rents it to tenants.