B.C. shooting suspect caught in border manhunt
Shooting near Sumas/Huntingdon border crossing Tuesday morning sparked manhunt
A suspect in a shooting yesterday near a rural B.C. border crossing was arrested by the Abbotsford emergency response team inside a basement residence around 4:30 a.m. PT this morning.
Police did not release the suspect's name or what charges he may be facing, but said he is known to police and has been a resident of the Fraser Valley and Lower Mainland in recent years.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials confirmed two backpacks containing about 27 kilograms of amphetamines were recovered near the site of yesterday's shooting on the U.S. side of the border.
Police also said they are investigating whether someone may have helped the suspect avoid police.
They released few other details about the arrest, except to say the investigation remains ongoing, and information was being withheld to protect the integrity of the case.
The massive manhunt began when U.S. border agents encountered two men wearing camouflage and toting backpacks in the Columbia Valley area on the U.S. side of the border, just east of the Huntingdon/Sumas border crossing, at around 9 a.m. PT Tuesday.
One of the men fired at the agents and then fled into the woods. The other man was taken into custody. No one was injured in the shooting.
Several helicopters, including a U.S. Blackhawk on the American side of the border, were involved in the search.
Roadblocks were set up on the Canadian side of the border for most of the day Tuesday as police on both sides of the border scoured the area. The incident also prompted a lockdown at nearby Upper Sumas Elementary School.