A man wanted on an international warrant was nabbed during a “routine traffic stop” in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, authorities announced Tuesday. The Vancouver Police Department said an officer spotted Halil Abrahim Akbalik distracted driving Friday morning and pulled him over on East Hastings Street. “A routine records check revealed that the driver was wanted on a Canada-wide immigration warrant issued by the Canada Border Services Agency,” the department said in a news release. “He was arrested and transported to the Vancouver Jail.” Akbalik is wanted south of the border in Philadelphia—where the 25-year-old is accused of rape and other offences—and is also being investigated by the Toronto Police Service’s fugitive team, authorities said. Since his arrest on Friday, Akbalik has been transferred from Vancouver police custody to the CBSA.
