A Port Alberni man is facing two counts of attempted murder after running down three people with a pickup truck and severely injuring all of them, RCMP Const. Steve Dupuis said.
Police were called to an incident on the 2800 block of Sixth Avenue shortly after 1 a.m. on Saturday, Dupuis said.
Police found a truck on its side with one person trapped under it, and two people laying injured nearby, he said. The truck had also crashed into a residence causing extensive damage.
Rescue crews from the Port Alberni Fire Department freed the man underneath the truck, and he and the other two injured people were taken to hospital. One of the group, an adult female, was flown to Victoria where she is recovering from broken legs, a broken pelvis and other injuries below the waist. The two other group members, both adult males, each had broken legs, Dupuis said.
The male occupant of the truck fled the scene. A police dog was deployed and subsequently captured one adult male and one male under age 17 a few blocks away.
Police have recommended two counts of attempted murder and one count of criminal negligence causing bodily harm against the driver of the truck – Travis Foord, 19. The male youth hasn't been charged, Dupuis said.
The initial investigation has revealed that there was allegedly an earlier altercation between Foord and one of the three three injured people. Foord later rammed his truck into the group and into the residence, Dupuis said.
“It appears to have been a willful act to hurt,” Dupuis said.
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