Police are investigating after an attempted abduction in a wealthy neighbourhood in Halifax's south end shortly before 10 a.m. on Tuesday.

Halifax Regional Police said a masked man entered a home on Oakland Road, armed with a firearm and attempted to remove another man by force.

The victim was able to get the suspect out of his house. The suspect fled and the victim called police.

Police scoured the south end for a few hours looking for the suspect using a canine unit but they were not able to find him, said Const. Pierre Bourdages.

"Our officers were on scene within minutes," he said. "An extensive search of the area was conducted, but the suspect was not located."

Police activity was centered around a large concrete house located on a property in the 1,100 block of Oakland Road.

There are three buildings located on the property: the large concrete main house, a boathouse on the Northwest Arm and a smaller house.

The victim was not injured during the incident.

The property where the incident occurred is registered to Brad Langille, the founder and former CEO of mining company Gammon Gold. Police would not confirm the name of the victim.

Police describe the suspect as a white man, about six feet tall with a slim build. They said the suspect was wearing a black mask, black jacket and dark baggy pants.

Halifax Regional Police said there was a dark black vehicle observed in the area but haven't determined if it's connected to the incident.

Bourdages said this is not a typical crime for this city, especially not in broad daylight.

"These types of crimes are always concerning, day or night, but this happened in early morning in a densely populated neighbourhood," he said.

"So we're asking for anybody who might have been in the area at the time might have seen something unusual prior to police responding to call us and provide us with the information they have."