A 57-year-old Vancouver man has been in police custody for nearly a month after he allegedly refused to give his real name to a traffic cop.
Mounties say Douglas Nikkel gave a fake name when the officer questioned him about not wearing his seatbelt on Dec. 13 in Delta.
Despite several warnings, police say Nikkel repeated the lie until he was finally arrested for obstruction of a peace officer.
“Not identifying yourself to a police officer or the courts over an alleged Motor Vehicle Act infraction is not the best choice,” Sgt. Peter Thiessen said in a statement.
“Nikkel has spent almost a month in jail over an alleged seatbelt infraction.”
The accused appeared in Surrey provincial court on Dec. 19, where police say he made matters worse by refusing to acknowledge his identity again or cooperate with the court.
He also allegedly threatened court personnel, and was remanded back into custody.
Nikkel has been charged with obstructing a peace officer, obstructing justice, uttering threats and failing to wear a seatbelt.
He is scheduled to appear in court again on Thursday.
