By Canadian Press

Explosives charges for man over bomb scare that shut Okanagan Lake bridge

Mar 26, 2025 | 8:59 AM

KELOWNA, B.C. — Mounties in Kelowna, B.C., say a 61-year-old man has been charged after an explosives scare that shut down a bridge across Okanagan Lake for about 11 hours earlier this year.

In a previous news release posted on Jan. 27, the RCMP said a man parked a white panel van across multiple lanes of the William R. Bennett Bridge that morning and posted online remarks about the vehicle’s contents.

Kelowna RCMP Insp. Chris Gable told a briefing that day that the man made “threatening comments” about his own well-being before setting a fire in the vehicle that firefighters quickly extinguished.

Gable said police convinced the man to get out and he was taken to hospital, but the “known contents of the van” described online and in phone calls posed a “significant risk,” and the vehicle couldn’t be removed until it was inspected by explosives officers.

Police now say the man was taken into custody on Tuesday after his release from hospital, and he appeared in court that evening.

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They say he faces 11 charges, including arson, making or possessing explosives, use of explosives to cause serious bodily harm, assaulting an officer and uttering threats.

The RCMP say the 61-year-old will remain in custody until his next court appearance on April 3.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 26, 2025.

The Canadian Press