Suspect charged with attempted murder of 5 RCMP officers after Merritt shootout

A man has been charged with the attempted murder of fiveRCMP officers after a weekend shootout that left an adult male suspect and an 11-year-old child with injuries.

According to court records, Gerald Hartley Cooper is scheduled to appear in provincial court in Kamloops, B.C., on Wednesday for a bail hearing on five counts of attempted murder and one count of failing to stop a vehicle while being pursued by police.

The charges follow an incident in Merritt, B.C., that spanned nearly two hours on Saturday afternoon, whenpolice attempted to stop a Ford F-350 truck with a flatbed trailer that was allegedly associated with a stolen property file.

The suspect vehicle allegedly refused to stop and evaded police. It was later spotted again by police, whoused a spike belt to stop the truck beforeit tookoff again and finally came to rest, at which point police apprehended the driver.

RCMP say gunfire was exchanged throughout the incident, which is nowunder investigation by B.C.'s Independent Investigations Office.The IIO routinely steps in to handle cases involving police shootings.

Cooper who was born in 1975 made an initial in-custody appearancethrough the province's Justice Centre on Monday evening. The centre operates around the clock to handle virtual bail hearings on the evenings and weekends.

The names of the five alleged victims match those of members of the Merritt detachment who have been identified in media releases in recent years, including that of a new arrival to the forcewho only recently graduated from the RCMP training depot.

Weapons charges

According to court records, Cooper was slated to appear in provincial court in Fort St. John, B.C.,on Thursday to enterpleas in relation to two weapons counts.

He was charged last year with manufacturing ortransferring a weapon andwith possession of a magazine with the clip removed. Cooper was released on a notice of undertaking.

On Monday, the IIO said that a man andhis 11-year-old son were found inside the truck with serious injuries and taken to hospital.

Both the man and the boy were said to be recovering.

The IIO has taken over the case and will beinvestigating whether officers' actions or inactionsled to the injuries.

None of the charges have been proven in court.