A fight on Canada Day at a busy Osoyoos beach ended with one person shot. Osoyoos RCMP detachment commander Sgt. Jason Bayda said that at 6:50 p.m., officers received a 911 call to White Sands Beach, a local term for a popular area on the east side of Lake Osoyoos. “What we know at this point is that there was a fight between two groups and one person pulled out a gun,” Bayda said. One person, an unnamed 22-year-old from Maple Ridge, was shot and has non-life-threatening injuries. The suspected shooter is an Oliver man, who said Baida has not yet been taken into custody. “We haven’t located him yet, but we are working with the Crown attorney and we hope to have a charge later today or tomorrow morning, at which point we will make further [news release] naming the suspect and hopefully asking for public assistance in locating this individual,” Bayda said. He hopes one of the many witnesses to the crime will come forward, adding that it’s surprising that of the estimated more than 100 people on the beach at the time, only one person called 911. “We know a lot of people don’t want to get involved in these things, but it was surprising that for something like this to go down, only one person called,” Bayda said. “We know there are witnesses to this event and hope to speak to anyone who may have seen it. We need the public’s help to help us fill in any small gaps there may be in this event and we hope to get a solid Crown report tips so we can hold this person accountable and put an end to these types of events.” You can contact the Osoyoos RCMP detachment at (250) 495-7236 or remain anonymous and leave a tip with Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
