No charges laid after man climbs on SUV, halts rush hour traffic in Halifax

Police responded to reports of a man sitting on the roof of a car in the Halifax Armdale Rotary on Wednesday.

Traffic ground to a halt in Halifax’s Armdale Rotary Wednesday during the afternoon rush hour after police responded to reports of a man sitting on the roof of car in the middle of traffic.

On Nova Scotia Webcams, a visibly distraught man is seen weaving in traffic, forcing drivers to slow down and stop. One bystander tries to help the man only for him to retreat and climb on to the roof of an SUV being driven by Mitchell Smith.

“I got down to the rotary and there was a guy that was out in the middle of the street and dodging cars, yelling that there was someone that was trying to kill him,” said Smith. “He locked eyes with me and screamed, ‘Help,’ and then he belly flopped on my hood and crawled to the top of my truck and grabbed onto my roof racks and held on for dear life and wouldn’t come down,” said Smith.

Smith, 24, says the damage to his SUV is likely minimal and he’s happy nobody was hurt. He’s declined pressing any charges.

“I would hope that he goes and gets the help that he needs,” Smith said.

Police were able to talk the man down from the vehicle and get him to safety.

“Our officers spoke with the man on scene and he was assessed briefly by EHS on scene and then taken to hospital for further assessment,” said Const. Martin Cromwell, an information officer with Halifax Regional Police.

Police say no charges are expected.

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