A man claiming to be the one who was photographed putting gasoline into garbage bags at a Bellingham gas station says he was using jerrycans.
The Province reports that a B.C. resident who was caught on camera at a gas station in Bellingham, Wash. putting gasoline into garbage bags called the newspaper to say he had jerrycans inside the bags.
"I'm not that stupid. I was putting gas in my jerrycans," the man, identifying himself only as "Bill," told the newspaper. "I didn't want it staining my trunk."
The man reportedly called the paper after seeing a photo of himself at the gas station online. He described himself as a Maple Ridge resident who travels often to the United States to fill up on gas and do his shopping.
The Huffington Post B.C. wrote about the story when Seattle's Komo News reported that police had been contacted to look into the footage.
Sgt. Mark Dennis of the Washington State Patrol said at the time that filling garbage bags with gasoline was a dangerous practice, especially if the gas got loose in the car.
The news came amidst reports that Americans in Bellingham were becoming frustrated with Canadian cross-border shoppers at a Costco location and began calling for "American-only hours" at the shopping centre.
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