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RCMP arrest youth for handgun offences

Mob turns ugly, shots fired at local nightclub By Andrew Mitchell and Dana Michell A 19-year-old male from Abbottsford is facing a charge of possession of a firearm for a dangerous purpose after he allegedly used a handgun to fire two shots into the

Mob turns ugly, shots fired at local nightclub

By Andrew Mitchell and Dana Michell

A 19-year-old male from Abbottsford is facing a charge of possession of a firearm for a dangerous purpose after he allegedly used a handgun to fire two shots into the door of a local nightclub.

According to the RCMP, members responded to a complaint of an assault outside of Tommy Africa’s nightclub at approximately 12:49 a.m. Tuesday, May 13, when a large group of males began to challenge and threaten the doormen and throw rocks at customers waiting in line at the club.

"Basically, what happened is that there was a large group of aggressive guys who we didn’t allow entry into our club. A lot of them didn’t have any I.D. or anything, so we turned them away," said Jon Tischuk, the general manager of Tommy Africa’s.

According to Tischuk, they came back in greater numbers and started to throw rocks at the customers who were waiting in line. Tischuk called the police, and the doormen from the club went outside to try and protect the people in line.

"There were about 25 of them and they were trying to pick fights with everybody. The doormen realized that some of them had weapons, so we were pretty relieved when the police turned up. The police arrested someone and the group kind of backed off," said Tischuk.

The doormen never saw any weapons, but some of the members of the crowd said they had them.

"Just when the police were leaving, the group came back, and they were still aggressive, and threatening people with weapons. That’s when we made the decision to shut the doors and get everyone in line inside for safety reasons."

People outside of the bar witnessed the shots, which were not audible from inside the club and barely marked what Tischuk said were $8,000 industrial steel doors.

The police came back to the scene and the witnesses provided the police with a description of the suspects. After a short investigation, the RCMP located the gun at a local hotel and arrested three males and two females from Abbotsford, age 17 to 19, for firearm offences. Until the owner of the gun can be established, it is common police procedure to arrest everyone.

The owner of the gun was held overnight, and transferred to court in North Vancouver to answer the charge Tuesday.

Tischuk said the club is looking into ways to prevent this kind of situation from taking place in the future. Some ideas include hiring extra security during the shoulder season, when groups from the city are drawn to Whistler by cheaper accommodation rates.

Another option being considered by Tischuk and other bar managers in the wake of this incident is the use of metal detectors.

"While the incident took place outside the club, if the suspect knew there were metal detectors he might have left the gun at home," said Tischuk. "Our major concern is for the safety of our patrons and the safety of our staff."

The club will also ask the RCMP for more police support, especially for the upcoming Victoria Day long weekend.

"Anything the police can do to increase their visibility is good for us," Tischuk said.

"Really, a club’s only response to weapons, the only thing I can do to prevent violence, is to call in police support."

Many of the youth were likely still in high school, and Tommy Africa’s wasn’t the first nightclub they tried to get into that night.

"What we want to get across is that this is a village safety story – a Whistler Village issue and not a Tommy Africa’s issue," Tischuk said.

Several other bar managers and owners agree, and want to make extra security measures and an integrated approach between the police and local businesses a top priority for the spring and summer season.

From bullet proof vests, bag checking and even advanced self-defence techniques, all avenues are being considered by some of the venues.

The Savage Beagle is also looking at installing metal detectors and providing additional training to their door staff to help them better detect and diffuse potentially dangerous situations. A spokesperson for the club, Morgan Blake, said that while most of their patrons are well behaved, the danger element is always there.

"While some security measures may seem extreme for a friendly place like Whistler, we feel if it can deter or prevent any possibly dangerous scenario for our guests and staff, we are going to do it," he said.

Buffalo Bill’s general manager Dale Schweighardt said the Victoria Day long weekend is notoriously the most precarious for after dark venues.

"The cheap prices bring the urban youth up in droves and while many of them are just fine, there’s that undesirable element that just can’t be trusted, unfortunately.

"Even if we don’t let groups in based on suspicions, they can still split up and come in two or three at a time, amassing inside. All we can do is continue to be strict and enforce a zero tolerance policy at the door," Schweighardt said.

The police were unaware at press time if the suspect had any prior record and although he has appeared in court, his name has not been released. Typically the name of a suspect is released only after the Crown accepts the charges.