A West Vancouver man is in custody and facing a host of charges after police responded to a domestic assault call and seized a cache of guns and ammunition Saturday night.
West Vancouver police responded to a domestic disturbance call in the 300-block of Moyne Drive just after 11 p.m. Police on the scene found a woman with severe injuries to her head and body, allegedly the result of being hit repeatedly, including with a firearm, police said.
Officers arrested the suspect without incident. Upon carrying out a search warrant, investigators found and seized 28 firearms and a "substantial quantity" of ammunition.
"It's a mix - some pistols, some shotguns, some rifles," said Const. Jeff Palmer, West Vancouver Police Department spokesman. "Whether the investigation concludes these are lawfully possessed and registered or not, that's a large amount of weapons for a personal residence, absolutely."
Their primary concern was for the 35-year-old victim, who has since been released from hospital, Palmer said. The investigation into the guns is ongoing.
"Officers responded very quickly and were able to secure the residence and secure the victim for treatment. Now it's a matter for the courts. While it's definitely an attention-getting amount of firearms, we'll be very thorough about documenting what, if any, registration documents are available for all of them," Palmer said.
En Zhong Li, 42, now faces one charge each of aggravated assault, unlawful confinement, use of a firearm in an offence, and careless use of a firearm as well as four counts of improperly storing a firearm.
Li is due back in court for a bail hearing on Tuesday
