Suspects in Merritt car-jacking face assault charges in court

MERRITT – Two suspects arrested after an alleged car-jacking turned into a police standoff at a Merritt hotel are in court today.

Samantha Kathleen Vleeming, born 1990, and Cory Claudio Battilana, born 1984, were arrested Nov. 25 after police followed up on a report of an attempted car-jacking at gunpoint. A man allegedly offered two hitchhikers a ride to Merritt and was assaulted after his passengers attempted to steal his car, according to Merritt RCMP.

The female suspect was arrested outside a Merritt hotel around noon, but the male remained barricaded in a hotel room until the RCMP Emergency Response Team arrived at 4:30 p.m. During the incident, police closed Highway 97C for a period of time. 

Both Vleeming and Battilana are charged with using a firearm in the commission of an offence. Vleeming is charged with assault causing bodily harm while Battliana is faces one count of assault with a weapon. Battilana also faces breaches on a sentence order from an unrelated offence.

The two suspects, who are in custody, are due in Kamloops Provincial Court today, Nov. 27, for a bail hearing.

To contact a reporter for this story, email Glynn Brothen at gbrothen@infonews.ca, or call 250-319-7494. To contact the editor, email mjones@infonews.ca or call 250-718-2724.