CRIME CLIPS: Stolen vehicle pursuit leads to dead end for suspect

By Michelle Croissant

Last week started off quietly enough for Grand Forks RCMP; but by Friday it started to get interesting, with BB gun vandalism and high-speed pursuits spicing things up in this quiet little community. Staff Sgt. Jim Harrison reported a total of 77 files between Midway and Grand Forks, including two separate motor vehicle accidents during the week that required police response. Neither accident was serious. "Both [were] in town," Harrison said. "No injuries, just minor damage."

Antique store hit with BB pellets

On Jan. 23 at 1:26 p.m. RCMP received a complaint of mischief to the front window of Second Street Antiques in Grand Forks. Unknown suspects shot BBs through the glass window sometime during the night of Jan. 19. The pellets went through the glass but did not shatter it.

No damage occurred to any of the surrounding businesses. There are no suspects or witnesses, and no evidence. "Anyone with knowledge is requested to contact the RCMP about that," said Harrison.

Stolen vehicle involved in break-and-enter and high-speed pursuit

The other case file on record with the Grand Forks detachment contained more than enough excitement to make up for an otherwise quiet week. "This is the dandy," commented Harrison.

On Jan. 23 at 8:30 a.m. RCMP received a complaint regarding the theft of a gold 2002 Dodge Dakota pickup truck from a residence on Darcy Road. The theft occurred sometime between the previous evening and 7 a.m. the morning of the 23rd. "Keys were in the vehicle and there was a quarter tank of fuel," said Harrison.

Half an hour after the complaint was made, at approximately 9 a.m., the vehicle was reported to be involved in a break-and-enter in Midway. According to Harrison, a residence was broken into and assorted jewellery and a gun safe containing two shotguns were stolen. Midway RCMP reported that the front door of the house was unlocked.

Shortly after the break-in occurred, a Midway RCMP member noticed the gold suspect vehicle passing the detachment in Midway. "He followed the vehicle," said Harrison, "and when he engaged his emergency equipment to apprehend the suspect in the stolen vehicle, a brief pursuit occurred."

The pursuit lasted for approximately one minute, as speeds of over 160 km/hour had been reached and the RCMP member decided it was not in the interest of public safety to continue the chase. "The suspect vehicle was seen passing another vehicle on a blind corner on a double sided line and the danger was just too great to continue pursuing," reported Harrison. Fog and road conditions were also a factor in the decision.

The vehicle was spotted again a short time later—this time entering Osoyoos. Harrison said that another pursuit ensued, this time with Osoyoos RCMP, "at which point the suspect in the matter made a grave error and turned down a dead end street, was boxed in by police, and subsequently arrested." The stolen vehicle, firearms and jewellery were all recovered.

The suspect—a 43-year-old Cranbrook area male of no fixed address—was held in custody in Osoyoos, then remanded in custody to appear in court in Penticton on Jan. 28. He is facing a number of charges from Grand Forks, Midway and Osoyoos, including break-and-enter and possession of a stolen vehicle. Harrison stated that he is "also charged with driving under suspension, dangerous driving, causing police pursuit—in two cases—as well as breach of his probation that he not possess firearms. So indications are very strong that this individual will likely be seeing some jail time out of this particular situation."

"The strange part of this investigation," noted Harrison, "is that at the scenes of all of the criminal activity—the theft of the truck, the break-and-enter in Midway, the subsequent recovery of the safe on Mt. Baldy Road, and at the scene where he was apprehended—footprints were located indicating two different types of shoes."  Investigators initially believed that two suspects were involved; however, upon apprehending the suspect, they discovered that he was actually wearing a different shoe on each foot. "So,” said Harrison,  “there was a tremendous amount of evidence against him in this case."

RCMP want to remind Boundary Region residents to be mindful and lock your doors at night and daylight hours when leaving your homes.  If you notice any suspicious activity in your neighbourhood or vehicles that don't belong, or if you know that your neighbour is away for extended period of time and suspicious activity is happening, do not hesitate to call 911 immediately. 

Midway area check stop nets several infractions

A comprehensive, six-hour check stop was conducted on Jan. 22 by a coordinated effort from Boundary Regional Traffic Services, CVSE (Commercial Vehicle Safety and Enforcement.), Forestry Protection Services, and RCMP officers. The check stop was set up in the Midway area at the scales west of town.  Commercial vehicles, logging trucks and the general public were stopped and checked.

According to Cpl. Judson Mayes of the Midway detachment, the over 40 non-commercial infractions included: unsafe passing, failure to display “N”, no-case drug seizures, failure to produce driver’s license, failure to produce insurance/registration, driving while prohibited, speeding, driving contrary to restrictions, driving under the influence, insecure loads, no winter tires, and vehicle defects.

Eighteen commercial vehicle inspections were also conducted. Commercial infractions included: no break-away device, contravention of condition of oversize permit, inadequate trailer brakes, disobeying Traffic Control Device (having tires not M&S rated and not carrying chains), bypassing the weigh scale, and failure to produce insurance.

If you have information about these or any other suspected crimes, please contact local RCMP at (250) 442-8288 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.

 While the Boundary Sentinel endeavors to report on any files of interest to the community, anything under the Mental Health Act cannot be published.