Langford residents hear series of gunshots

• Quiet neighbourhood shattered • Police advise residents to be vigilant

Residents of a West Shore neighbourhood are on edge after hearing what they believe to have been gunshots near their homes in the area of Jacklin Road and Orono Avenue on Wednesday night.

“It’s a bit spooky,” said Paul Archer, who lives directly across Orono from where police were searching in response to calls about gunshots.

He said he was watching television when he heard the noise.

“It was almost mechanical. Bang! Bang! Five shots.”

Archer said his friend turned to him and said: “Oh, firecrackers,” but he knew that was definitely not the case.

“I said: ‘That was gunshots,’ so we stayed inside for a little bit, just to be safe.”

When he eventually went out, the police had arrived, Archer said.

“I said: ‘Definitely something’s going down right now.’ ”

Mark Bailey, who lives in the same home, said he is concerned about the possibility of “some nut firing a gun.”

He said he heard three shots, not something he expects on the street.

“It’s a really, really quiet neighbourhood.”

West Shore RCMP received multiple 911 calls about gunshots about 10:15 p.m. Wednesday.

Officers responded immediately and continue to look for evidence.

There are no suspects, but police have some clues that they are not yet specifying, said West Shore RCMP Const. Alex Bérubé.

“Based on the evidence that was recovered at the scene, there is a strong likelihood that shots were fired,” he said. “We checked with hospitals and we don’t have any information that anybody was injured.”

Forensics experts and a Saanich police dog have helped with the search.

Police are asking the public to come forward with anything they know, Bérubé said.

“We’re talking about individuals, cars, anything that was out of the ordinary,” he said.

“We’re confident that there are people with information about this.”

Members of the public are advised to be cautious and vigilant, Bérubé said.

“We don’t know if there’s a risk to the public.”

Anyone with information is asked to call West Shore RCMP at 250-474-2264 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477), or go to victoriacrimestoppers.ca.