Lethbridge Police are investigating a bizarre incident Sunday night where a man was allegedly kidnapped outside the north side McDonalds, and forced at knife-point, to drive around the city.
Officers say an unknown man got into the victim’s vehicle just before midnight, brandished what appeared to be a large machete, and forced the driver to stop at a bank ATM and withdraw cash.
He then forced him to drive to the Supervised Consumption Site and out to the Blood Reserve where the victim was left on the side of the road.
The suspect took off in the vehicle.
The man flagged down a passing motorist before the suspect returned to the area and began chasing the victim and the passerby who’d stopped to help.
Several southern Alberta police agencies responded to their 911 call and later located the victim’s vehicle abandoned near Fort Macleod.
The suspect is described as an Aboriginal male, with a thin build in his late 20’s. His whereabouts is unknown at this time.
The victim suffered minor injuries.
Police are also investigating a weapons complaint involving a machete that occurred in the 2100 block of 5th avenue north in the same time frame as the kidnapping and say it’s possible the two incidents are related.