Two teenagers were arrested Wednesday after a prank involving a faked ax attack.
Police were called to a gas station parking lot at Northeast Fourth Plain and Northeast Andresen Road at about 11 p.m. Wednesday for a report of a person wearing a motorcycle helmet and leather jacket attacking another person with an ax before running off, according to Vancouver Police spokeswoman Kim Kapp.
A similar situation was reported to police at about 11 p.m. on Tuesday in the 600 block of Broadway. In that incident, which also involved a person chasing another person with an ax, police were not able to find a suspect, Kapp said.
No injuries occurred in either incident, but in both the suspect charged at bystanders, Kapp said, and the unsuspecting victims believed they were about to be attacked with a real ax. Court documents reveal the suspect swung the ax in a slashing manner and got within four feet of one of the victims.
The bystanders, Kapp said, “expressed extreme fear for their lives. … They were unaware that it was fake.”
Officers were able to identify and locate the suspects, who told police they were pranking people by pretending to attack one another and threaten nearby residents while they videotaped the incident, Kapp said in a press release.
Pavel V. Krivov, 18, was arrested on suspicion of two counts of second-degree assault and Petru G. Tomceac, 18, was arrested on suspicion of two counts of criminal conspiracy. Both Vancouver teens were booked into the Clark County Jail and are being held on $20,000 bail.
The ax was located by police and was determined to be a realistic-looking fake ax.
Court documents state Tomceac told police he videotaped the incidents and drove the getaway car and had performed the stunt a total of four times. Tomceac said he and his friends intended to post the videos on YouTube and make money off of them, according to court documents.
Kapp, however, said police didn’t find the incident funny.
“It’s not a joke, it’s not a Halloween prank, it’s a crime and these two are in jail for that,” Kapp said. While celebrating Halloween, she said, “fake weapons that look real absolutely should be left at home.”
Both men are scheduled to be arraigned at their next court appearance scheduled for Nov. 14.
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