The 23-year-old man at the centre of a dramatic police standoff in downtown Vancouver Monday afternoon involving anti-riot guns, a Taser and a sword has been charged with possession of a dangerous weapon.
The incident unfolded in front of hundreds of bystanders at the busy intersection of Burrard and Georgia streets after he allegedly began waving the sword and ranting.
The man was first seen sheathing and unsheathing the sword near the Metrotown SkyTrain Station at around 1:30 p.m., but soon boarded a train into Vancouver.
Transit Police intercepted him at Burrard Station, but he refused to cooperate with negotiators or comply with demands to drop the sword.
Emergency Response Team members were called in, and eventually fired both a Taser and non-lethal anti-riot guns at him, both of which were ineffective.
Officers were finally forced to chase him down, tackle him and seize the weapon. No injuries were reported.
Paramveer Singh Rarru, who is known to police, has been charged with one count of weapon possession. He has been remanded into custody and police have asked the courts to consider a psychological examination.
Anyone who witnessed the incident but has not spoken to police is asked to contact the Vancouver Police Department at 604-717-2541 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
