Vancouver police say a violent offender, who fled his halfway house in 2023, was arrested in the Downtown Eastside where he's been living under a false name. 

He was taken into custody on Saturday (May 10) near Gore Avenue and Alexander Street. Police believe had been living in the neighbourhood for the past two years, using a false name and working part-time as kitchen staff in a shelter, according to a news release from the Vancouver Police Department Monday (May 12).

A Vancouver police investigation, according to Sgt. Steve Addison, found that he had been hiding out in the Downtown Eastside since his disappearance. 

Police say the 30-year-old, who cannot be identified by name as he was convicted as a youth, was serving a 10-year, five-month jail sentence for multiple crimes, including second-degree murder in Winnipeg when he received a statutory release in March 2023. He was ordered to live at a halfway house in New Westminster. 

At the time of his release, the man was also serving a four-year sentence for aggravated assaults on two corrections officers. 

Police said that "within weeks of his release," he disappeared from the halfway house and he's been wanted on a Canada-wide warrant since May 2023.