Revelstoke RCMP would like to speak with anyone who might have witnessed an officer get pepper sprayed by a motorist during a traffic stop near Revelstoke on Sunday morning, June 7, 2020.

(JENNIFER STAHN / iNFOnews.ca)

Police have made an arrest in connection with an officer assault during a weekend traffic stop near Revelstoke.

A Revelstoke RCMP officer was pepper sprayed by the driver of a blue, early 90s GMC Tracker towing a white enclosed utility trailer around 9:30 a.m. Sunday, June 7.

The officer was conducting a traffic stop on Highway 1, approximately 20 kilometres east of the city.

"During the course of what started as a routine traffic stop, the driver deployed pepper spray at the police officer, while (the) officer interacted with the woman at her driver’s side window,” police spokesperson Cpl. Jesse O’Donaghey said in  a press release issued this afternoon.

“While our officer was dealing with the temporarily disabling effects of the pepper spray, a male passenger exited the vehicle and the suspect fled the area eastbound along the highway.”

Police located the suspect a few kilometres away from the scene, near the Giant Cedars Boardwalk.

The 26-year-old Maple Ridge woman remains in custody and faces a number of potential criminal charges. The police investigation is ongoing.

The police officer was treated at the scene by B.C. Ambulance personnel.

The officer determined the male passenger in the vehicle was not associated with the suspect, but had been hitchhiking when he was picked up by the woman.

A search of the vehicle revealed a loaded crossbow, pepper spray, and a knife.

"This shocking situation highlights the inherent dangers that frontline police officers face each and every day they go to work,” Revelstoke RCMP Detachment Commander Sgt. Kurt Grabinsky said.

“This officer remained focussed on her duty to protect and serve the public by continuing her investigation and relaying important details to other officers in order to safely apprehend the woman who posed a potential risk to herself and others,” he said.

Anyone witnessing this incident, or who believes they might have had an encounter with the woman prior to this incident is asked to call Revelstoke RCMP at 250-837-5255.

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