Afshin Maleki Ighani from Oliver is in police custody after an intense police chase in Princeton on Saturday. Ighani was wanted for attempted murder following a shooting in Oliver last week.
An Oliver man wanted for attempted murder was arrested in Princeton on Saturday following an alleged kidnapping.
Forty-five-year-old Afshin Maleki Ighani was apprehended following a police chase and involved a reported kidnapping of a woman.
On April 22 at approximately 11 am the Princeton RCMP received information that an adult female had allegedly been forcibly confined in her vehicle by Ighani. He had been the subject of a warrant for his arrest for attempted murder, stemming from a shooting incident in Oliver last week. The victim suffered a non, life-threatening injury. Both victim and shooter were known to each other.
Saturday’s incident in Princeton began with a male and a female being in the company of Ighani in the man’s car. It was reported that while in a restaurant parking lot, the male was ordered out of the car and Ighani left with the man’s girlfriend still in the car. The male victim then allegedly stole a motorcycle from the restaurant parking lot and attempted to follow Ighani.
All three individuals were known to each other.
RCMP checkpoints were set up in the Keremeos area in efforts to intercept the vehicle, however, only the male on the motorcycle was observed coming through, at which time he failed to stop for police. Penticton RCMP officers located the stolen motorcycle in Okanagan Falls shortly after. The man had abandoned the motorcycle and fled the area on foot.
An RCMP helicopter had been dispatched with police eventually being able to locate the vehicle via a cell phone ping in the Manning Park area headed towards Princeton.
At one point the vehicle was spotted by an RCMP helicopter entering the town of Princeton where officers on the ground converged on it in a local trailer home park. RCMP officers noted that the vehicle was still occupied by Ighani and the woman. At one point in the efforts to arrest Ighani, an officer discharged a firearm towards the vehicle.
Ighani fled the vehicle without the woman who remained inside the car, however, he was tracked and captured by an RCMP dog team a short distance away in a wooded area.
Extensive investigative efforts continued on throughout the week since the shooting incident in Oliver. They involved a large number of police resources from various detachments.
“We are relieved that we were able to take him into custody without any harm to the public or our officers,” said Cpl. Dan Moskaluk. “We also thank the media and the public for the receipt of several sightings since his warrant being issued and made public”
Ighani remains in custody and is anticipated to be remanded with further charges, including attempted murder, uttering threats, pointing a firearm, and possessing a firearm while prohibited.
