Stuck driver pointed gun at passerby trying to help, police say

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This article was published 19/02/2018 (2251 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A Winnipeg man who got his car stuck in a snowbank has been charged with numerous offences after threatening to shoot a person trying to help him.

Winnipeg police said Tuesday that a passerby found a vehicle stuck in a snowbank at Copeland Street in the Transcona South area Monday at about 1:30 p.m.

Police said the passerby called 911 after the driver said he was frozen and needed help. Police said the driver then threatened to shoot the caller and tried to back the vehicle out of the snowbank. The suspect ran away when he couldn’t get the vehicle out of the snowbank.

Police found keys to the vehicle, a .22-calibre cartridge and $2,975 in cash when they arrested the suspect a short time later near Dugald and Murdock roads.

Police determined the car had been stolen from in front of a convenience store in the 700 block of Corydon Avenue the previous night, when the driver had left the vehicle running and went into the store.

A search by officers found a backpack buried in the snow with a .22-calibre handgun inside along with a spent round and a collapsible baton. As well, police also found a loaded .22-calibre semi-automatic rifle hidden inside an unlocked vehicle parked close to where the stolen car was stuck in the snowbank.

Victor Maurice Cobham, 35, has been charged with numerous weapons offences, including possession of a weapon, carrying a concealed weapon, careless use of a weapon and possession of property obtained by crime both over and under $5,000.

Police said the suspect is also accused of accepting a contract for graphic art work, but not doing the work. He faces a charge of fraud under $5,000 in that matter.

Cobham is in custody.