Skip to content

Man at the centre of Central Saanich gas station incident found guilty of 5 charges

Johnathan Pocetti drove onto the hood of a Central Saanich police cruiser
31169788_web1_210910-vne-wanted-johnathan-pocetti_1
Johnathan Pocetti has been found guilty of five charges, including assaulting police with a weapon, following an incident involving Central Saanich police. (Courtesy of VicPD)

A man who tried to flee Central Saanich police was found guilty of all charges, including assaulting police with a weapon.

Johnathan Pocetti was also found guilty of dangerous driving, flight from police, mischief, and driving while prohibited. He learnt his fate on Nov. 17, a little more than a year after the incident.

A Central Saanich police officer noted a Motor Vehicle Act infraction on Pocetti’s truck while he was filling up at the Peninsula Co-op location on West Saanich Road on Aug. 30, 2021. When the officer tried to speak to Pocetti about the infraction, he reversed his truck away from the officer’s police vehicle, hitting a curb in front of the gas station building, according to a release from Central Saanich Police Service.

RELATED: Warrants issued after Central Saanich police vehicle rammed at gas station

“When the officer used his patrol car to block the truck’s exit, (Pocetti) drove up onto the hood of the police vehicle, pushing it backwards, narrowly missing a gas pump and causing further damage to the gas station’s property,” it reads.

Police later arrested Pocetti with the assistance of the Greater Victoria Emergency Response Team. No one was hurt during the incident, including members of the public.

Const. Tristan Gentile, community engagement officer with Central Saanich Police Service, thanked the department’s policing partners as well as the public. “(This) coordinated approach led to the apprehension of the accused as soon as possible,” said Gentile.

RELATED: Greater Victoria police team makes loud arrest of high-risk offender


Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroom@peninsulanewsreview.com.

Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and like us on Facebook.

wolfgang.depner@peninsulanewsreview.com



Wolf Depner

About the Author: Wolf Depner

I joined the national team with Black Press Media in 2023 from the Peninsula News Review, where I had reported on Vancouver Island's Saanich Peninsula since 2019.
Read more