A Delta man is facing a litany of charges after he ran down women in separate areas of Lower Lonsdale in a drug-fuelled driving rampage, according to police.
The disturbing episode started at about 8:30 p.m. Monday when the suspect, driving a blue Mustang, called out to a man and woman who were on foot near West Esplanade and Semisch Avenue in North Vancouver. After the brief exchange, he hit the gas and rammed the woman, toppling her over the hood of his car before speeding away, police alleged.
Moments later, the man pulled up to another group of women a block east of the first encounter and ordered them into his vehicle. When they refused, he again drove into one of them, according to police, this time pinning her against a pole before veering off.
Over the next few minutes North Vancouver RCMP, already on the hunt for the man, were flooded with calls from witnesses who said they saw his vehicle strike another car near the busy Keith Road and Lonsdale Avenue intersection.
The driver of that car followed the Mustang until it stopped and allegedly rammed her vehicle two more times before again speeding away.
A few minutes later the driver called out to another woman farther up the hill and again ordered her into his car, according to police. When she refused, he allegedly threatened to kill her. He then fled.
Mounties finally caught up with the suspect two blocks north, boxed his Mustang in and arrested him. Officers later performed a sobriety test on the man and concluded he was on drugs.
Investigators will have to wait for the results of lab tests before they can determine what substance may have been in the mans system, said Sgt. Peter DeVries, a spokesman for the North Vancouver RCMP. The behaviour was in keeping with past experience, however.
As a police officer, Ive seen people who have ingested various types of drugs acting in the most bizarre and strange ways, said DeVries. Sometimes, the ways in which they act are extremely dangerous.
One of the two pedestrians who had been run down in the incident was seriously hurt, but neither suffered life-threatening injuries, he said.
I think its very fortunate that no one was more seriously hurt or killed, said DeVries. I think it was due in large part to the very quick and overwhelming response of the officers to flood the area and swarm in on him . . . but I think the other factor was just sheer luck.
Michael Lee Meller, 46, has been charged with impaired driving causing bodily harm, dangerous driving causing bodily harm, uttering threats and leaving the scene of an accident. He appeared in North Vancouver provincial court Tuesday afternoon and was remanded in custody until his bail hearing Aug. 16.
