What started out as a bachelor party prank ended with police, emergency response teams, and probably a few groomsmen reconsidering their life choices.
In the early morning hours of Friday, May 29th, VicPD received several reports of a kidnapping in progress and responded accordingly.
Police say witnesses were reporting a group of men throwing a bag over an individual’s head and pulling him into a white van near the Law Courts in downtown Victoria.
“Given the nature of the incident, its proximity to a high-security area, and corroborating eyewitness accounts, several VicPD investigative units, along with the Greater Victoria Emergency Response Team (GVERT), were deployed to respond swiftly and thoroughly,” said VicPD in a statement.
Police were able to locate the white van in Victoria, and after a few hours, VicPD figured out what was happening, realizing it was just a bachelor party prank.
“We appreciate people wanting to have fun, but this took it too far,” said Staff Sergeant Shawn Robson.
“The initial reports led us to believe a violent kidnapping was in progress, requiring an immediate and significant response to a situation that turned out to be false.”
Robson added that VicPD wants to urge the public to be cognizant of how a prank could be viewed by others in the community.
