COURTENAY, B.C. - A search is underway on Vancouver Island for a man who slashed an elderly resident in the face with a machete-like weapon in what Comox Valley RCMP say was an apparent unprovoked attack.
Const. Monika Terragni says the attack happened just after 4 a.m. Wednesday as the 89-year-old victim was sitting in his car in an area of downtown Courtenay.
The senior says he was approached by a young man, possibly in his 20s, who asked for cigarettes.
Terragni says the suspect, who was riding a bicycle, slashed the victim after being told the man had no cigarettes.
The man suffered severe cuts to his forehead, the area below his left eye and a slash from cheek to cheek, but he was able to drive himself to hospital for treatment.
Police are appealing for witnesses to the attack and urge anyone with surveillance or dashcam video to speak to come forward.