Attempted murder charges have been dropped against Gerald Cooper, a Fort St John man who was involved in a shootout with RCMP between Merritt and Lower Nicola along Hwy 8 last summer.
A high-speed car chase involving Merritt RCMP and a suspect occurred after RCMP attempted to stop a white Ford F-350 with a flatbed trailer that had been recently linked to a stolen vehicle file.
When the vehicle was eventually stopped, the suspect and RCMP exchanged gunfire.
Both occupants of the suspect vehicle, including Cooper and a child thought to be under twelve years of age, were transported to hospital with serious injuries.
Cooper had sustained a non-life threatening gunshot wound, but the Independent Investigators Office (IIO) BC did note that the child had not sustained a gunshot injury.
Cooper was initially charged with five counts of attempted murder involving Merritt detachment RCMP officers.
While these charges have been dropped, two charges of possession of stolen property over $5,000 remain, as do six counts of using a prohibited weapon.
Cooper is expected to appear in the Merritt Law Courts on March 15 to address the remaining charges.
