1 dead and 2 injured after attempted robbery in Vancouver Canadian Tire
An alleged armed robber was shot dead outside a Vancouver Canadian Tire Thursday after stabbing a store employee and an officer, according to police.
"Police arrived and confronted the suspect as he ran from the store. During the arrest the man stabbed a VPD officer multiple times," the Vancouver Police Department said in a statement.
The officer and store employee are in stable condition in hospital.
The Independent Investigations Office, which investigates all police-involved shootings, has been deployed to the scene.
The incident unfolded around 3:15 p.m. PT at the Grandview Highway and Bentall Street store.
The Vancouver Police Department is on scene. Grandview has been closed near the store.
'He's got a gun!'
Tamara Jones was inside the Canadian Tire with her son, Atlin, when she said she heard gunshots on the second floor.
"We were downstairs and all of a sudden we hear this yelling. I hear the yelling intensify and then I hear someone say 'He's got a gun! And then somebody else yelled 'hit the floor!'"
Jones said she left the building, but shortly after there was an altercation between police and a man at the front of the store.
"Several police … yelling at him to relent. They were saying drop your weapon or stand down, but the suspect would not," said Jones.
An ambulance left the scene with an injured person shortly after.
Multiple other people in the store reported hearing gunshots as well, but Vancouver Police say the victim did not have a firearm on him when he was shot.
Katarina Mitchell, 24, said she was in the upstairs parking lot of the Canadian Tire when she saw employees and customers running out of the store. Moments later, she said she heard sirens and police cars came flying into the lot.
Several officers got out of the cars carrying guns just before a large man wearing a green jacket came out of Canadian Tire holding what appeared to be a rifle and a spray can, she said.
The man sprayed something at the first officer who approached and a substance appeared to get in his eyes, she said, adding that a second officer then came after the man from behind and the two started "wrestling" on the ground.
"Then you hear shots go off, bang, bang, bang," Mitchell said. "The guy is just dead on the ground there, not moving."
Mitchell said about 15 police cars responded as well as several ambulances and fire trucks.
"It's kind of scary," she said. "Especially living in this area, that something like this can happen so close to home. It's
lucky that more people didn't get hurt in this horrible situation."
