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Keep the peace call in Fernie turns violent
On January 15, at 2:26 p.m., Elk Valley Regional RCMP was dispatched to a call for a ‘keep the peace’ at an address in the 1100 block of 1st Avenue in Fernie.
The complainant reported requiring assistance to remove his belongings from the residence after a disagreement with the homeowner, resulting in the complainant wanting to leave the location and not feeling safe to do so without police assistance.
These calls are common for police and typically require officers to standby and ensure everyone comes and goes safely from the location. What happened during the assistance file was not common to these situations.
While the complainant removed their belongings, the intoxicated homeowner started to become agitated toward the attending officers, yelling and swearing at the officers, then throwing smaller items in their general direction, but the officers were able to stabilize the situation by talking to the man.
After the complainant had left, the front door had been closed and the officers were approaching their vehicles to leave, the homeowner exited the home and began to expose himself to the officers while standing on the front porch – this included pulling off his pants, dancing around the porch half-naked and then bending over exposing himself further to the police officers, who were trying to leave.
The homeowner then began to throw items towards the officers as they started to enter their vehicles, which included pieces of drywall that were on the porch.
As the officers were in the vehicles, the man rushed the officers and began striking the side window of one patrol car, then turned to the other car and broke the front windshield with his fist wrapped in his own pants.
The officers exited the vehicles and arrested the man for mischief for breaking the windshield of the patrol car. The man then threatened one of the officers, by stating “I am going to strangle you and watch you die.”
A struggle ensued where the man continued to try and kick or strike both officers. At this point, other officers working were alerted and began heading toward the location using emergency equipment to assist the involved members.
The man was eventually put in handcuffs and was placed in the patrol car, where he continued to kick the rear door hard enough to bend the door frame. The man was then taken to cells and safely lodged with the assistance of four officers.
The man suffered from self-inflicted injuries caused by his actions during the event which were treated by the attending officers. None of the officers involved were injured.
Criminal charges of Mischief, Obstruction, Uttering threats to a Police officer and Assaulting a Police Officer were sworn against Scott Bell of Fernie on January 16. Bell was detained after a lengthy bail hearing the next day and placed in the custody of BC Corrections.
Our investigation is ongoing. File 2026-163 refers.
e-KNOW file photo
Elk Valley Regional RCMP
