Missing camper presumed to have drowned after firing shots for help

AGASSIZ, B.C. – The RCMP believes it has unravelled the mystery around a shots-fired call and the disappearance of a Vancouver man camping at Harrison Lake, B.C.

The search for Raymond Salmen began on June 9, when Agassiz RCMP received complaints of shots being fired.

Several days later, investigators followed some balloons to a secluded beach 400 meters north of Salmen’s camp, and found what they believed to be the man’s clothes, a rifle and shell casings.

Mounties say they think Salmen may have been in medical distress and fired the shots hoping to draw the attention of nearby campers.

Police say when that didn’t work, Salmen may have tried to swim back to his camp site, but drowned in the process.

Salmen’s body has not been found in the lake, and next of kin has been notified.