Two women were thrown into the Gorge Waterway Sunday after being confronted by an unknown man wanting a cigarette.
The man approached the mother and daughter, 53 and 31, around 5 p.m. on a small dock near Tillicum Road looking to trade the pair a beer for a smoke.
An argument between the man and the younger woman began, and it is alleged he grabbed the woman by the arms and shoved her into the Gorge.
Saanich police Staff Sgt. Scott Treble said in a press release: "He briefly held her head under the water. Her mother intervened but the man then kicked her from behind into the water."
He then threw a can of beer at the younger woman, resulting in a minor head injury.
The man, described as a 50-year-old caucasian with a stocky build, fled on foot through a nearby trail. He was last seen heading east on Gorge Road West.
The man is approximately 5-foot-8, 235 pounds with a silver-brown hair mullet hairstyle and a brown goatee. He was wearing a greenish Hawaiian shirt and green khaki pants.
Treble said the two women weren't seriously injured, but were "very cold and shaken up when treated by paramedics." Neither woman was willing to provide police with much information.
Police are asking anyone with information on this incident to call 250-475-4321.
kslavin@saanichnews.com