Man charged after pickup truck driven through tent at Thunder Bay, Ont., homeless encampment

A Fowler Township man has been charged after a pickup truck was driven over a tent at a homeless encampment on Tuesday afternoon, Thunder Bay police said.

Nobody was in the tent at the time of the incident, which occurred at about 3:50 p.m. ET at the former Suny's gas bar in the County Fair Plaza parking lot.

Police said officers were dispatched after being notified the truck had driven over a tent at the encampment. There was initial concern someone had been sleeping inside, but further investigation revealed the tent was empty.

Officers located the truck on East Avenue and conducted a traffic stop. Police also saw debris suspected to be from the damaged tent on the truck.

The 37-year-old driver has been charged with dangerous operation of a motor vehicle. He's been released from custody and is due in court on Dec. 14.

Police have not yet released the name of the accused, as the charge hasn't been sworn to in court yet.

Thunder Bay police Community Services Insp. Derek West said Wednesday the investigation has not led police to believe the driver was impaired by alcohol or drugs at the time of the incident.