A 61-year 琉璃神社 man has been charged with several offences in connection with an incident that shut down William R. Bennett Bridge in January.
RCMP is recommending the following charges against Roy Winter:
- Arson
- Making or possessing explosives
- Use of explosives to cause serious bodily harm
- Possession of incendiary material
- Mischief endangering life
- Mischief
- Nuisance endangering life
- Assault peace officer with a weapon
- Resist/obstruct peace officer
- Uttering threats
- Possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose
Winter was taken into custody on March 25 following his release from hospital, and appeared in court later that evening. He remains in custody and his next court appearance is on April 3.
鈥淭his is a well coordinated and sizeable investigation, spearheaded by the 琉璃神社 RCMP鈥檚 General Investigative Support Team,鈥� said Cpl. Michael Gauthier. 鈥淚t is imperative that we protect the ongoing judicial process, with that no further details will be released at this time.鈥�
On Jan. 27, at approximately 3:45 a.m., a man parked a white van across the eastbound lanes of the bridge. Police received a report of a distraught man, who made threatening comments about his well-being.
Emails sent to media outlets, and posts to social media indicated that there might be explosive material in the van. BC Ambulance and fire crews were on scene after a fire started in the van. Firefighters were able to extinguish the blaze and the man was apprehended. An assessment of the vehicle, and the man鈥檚 comments resulted in South East District and Explosive Disposal Unit being called to the scene.
The known contents of the van presented a significant risk to public safety 琉璃神社 RCMP acting officer in charge, Inspector Chris Goebel said at the time. RCMP also searched a home on Terai Court in Rutland later in the day. Police stated that their presence was related to the incident on Bennett Bridge.
The bridge was closed for nearly 11 hours, causing chaos for commuters and severely impacting the daily routine for tens of thousands of residents.
