A 19-year-old Vancouver man was choked and robbed of a large amount of cash after catching a taxi with three men he met earlier that night.
The robbery took place Saturday morning around 3 a.m. near Beckley Avenue and Oswego Street, where the victim and three men had exited a cab after leaving a downtown hotel.
"The victim had spent part of the night with this group but had become uncomfortable when they started talking about their criminal histories," said Const. Mike Russell.
After exiting the cab, one man left the area.
"It was at this time that the two (remaining men) demanded all the cash," Russell said. "One of the suspects started to choke (the victim) and forcefully take the money."
After VicPD were called to the area, rookie Const. Cam Stephen spotted a man running through the neighbourhood.
He jumped out of his police cruiser and pursued the man, arresting him in the 300-block of Michigan St.
Police recovered the money, but the second suspect remains at large.
Russell was unable to speculate as to why the man was carrying the cash, but added the investigation will continue.
Tyler Wickes, 18, is facing charges of robbery, breaching an undertaking and breaching probation.
dpalmer@vicnews.com