A Vernon man who allegedly broke into a home only to be fended off by a senior with a cane has had his bail hearing moved to next week.
Justin Wade Inverarity, 34, appeared via video in Vernon Law Courts courtroom 201 for about two minutes Thursday, July 12 for the matter of his bail hearing to be moved to Tuesday, July 17.
Related: Vernon senior beats back armed intruder with cane
Reports allege that the accused attempted to break into an 84-year-old woman’s home in the 1000 block of 30th Avenue shortly before 5 a.m. July 4.
The woman fended off the suspect, who was allegedly armed with an axe and hammer, with her cane and called 9-1-1.
She told police that someone had just broken the window of their front door and was attempting to gain access by reaching through the broken window to unlock the door from the inside.
The homeowner managed to prevent the suspect from gaining entry to her home by hitting the man on his hands with her cane, but he was able to get keys and gained entry into the attached garage.
Police quickly arrived at the residence and found the suspect male still in the garage. Reportedly armed with an axe and a hammer, the suspect male became combative towards the officers.
“The officers attempted to negotiate with the male to drop the weapons, however, he allegedly made it clear that he wasn’t going to jail and would do anything to prevent that,” said RCMP Const. Kelly Brett.
The officers then used a Taser in an effort to stop the suspect. However, they deployed the device twice as the man continued to fight with police.
“The actions of the man clearly could have resulted in serious injuries to himself, the victim, or our officers,” said Acting Operations Officer, Sgt. Tory Romailer. “We commend our officers for their quick response and ability to resolve a violent situation safely.”
Inverarity is charged with break and enter, attempted theft of a motor vehicle, mischief, assault and breach of probation and remains remanded in custody.
None of the charges against him have been proven in court.
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parker.crook@vernonmorningstar.com
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