The quick thinking actions of an off-duty Vancouver Police officer resulted in the arrest and charges of two men after an armed robbery.

At about 5:00 p.m. on August 1st, the off-duty officer was driving his personal vehicle when he observed a man wearing a balaclava and carrying a handgun enter the pharmacy at the corner of Granville Street and West 16th Avenue.

The off-duty cop believed the man was committing a robbery and immediately called 9-1-1. He remained on the phone as the masked man ran out of the pharmacy carrying his loot to a waiting getaway car driven by a second suspect.

Continuously updating his location to police by phone, the officer followed the suspect and his accomplice and confirmed the pharmacy had indeed been robbed. The two crooks eventually found themselves in a dead-end cul-de-sac on 11th Avenue near Arbutus Street.

The armed man jumped out of the passenger’s seat and fled on foot, followed closely behind by the off-duty officer. As the young, fit and fast officer gained ground on his target, the suspect turned, raised and pointed a loaded semi-automatic handgun. Thankfully, the suspect did not pull the trigger. Instead, he turned and ran again.

Uniformed officers arrived and took the driver of the getaway car into custody. As a result of the descriptions and information provided by the off-duty constable, his on-duty colleagues were able to locate the alleged robber nearby on Cypress Street at West 4th Avenue.

The handgun was later found by police in a recycle bin off Broadway and Cypress Street.

“This is a great example of our officers going beyond the call,” says Vancouver Police spokesperson Constable Brian Montague. “He put public safety first and risked his personal safety to stop a pair of violent criminals.”

The two men, who are well known to police, remain in custody on multiple charges that include robbery with a firearm, disguise with intent to commit an offence and pointing a firearm.