On Jan. 1, a 21-year-old male and a 19-year-old male were charged with multiple Criminal Code offences after a series of vehicle thefts, break and enter, failure to stop for police and other offences in central Alberta.
It’s alleged that on New Year’s Eve in Ponoka, the males stole a Chevrolet Silverado truck and drove it to Daysland. The next day, the duo attended rural properties in Daysland and Bawlf and stole two snowmobiles. The snowmobiles were later abandoned near another rural location in Bawlf.
The culprits broke into a building and stole a Toyota Camry, drove it to Fort Saskatchewan, where the RCMP attempted to stop the vehicle after an impaired driving complaint. The suspects fled from police — a pursuit was not initiated.
Later the same day, Ponoka RCMP received a dangerous-driving complaint involving the suspect vehicle. The suspects eventually rolled the stolen car at the junction of Highway 604 and Highway 2A.
During the rollover, the vehicle partially impeded a Canadian Pacific railway track. A witness flagged down a provincial traffic sheriff who arrived on the scene moments after the crash occurred, as both males had already fled on foot.
The RCMP Police Dog Service was called, however, as other witnesses advised police that the males had hitched a ride from an unsuspecting citizen. It was later discovered that the same citizen had driven the males to Lacombe.
Lacombe Police Service, Ponoka RCMP and Police Dog Service attended the Lacombe residence and arrested the males without incident.
Some of the charges are:
Theft of a pickup truck — Ponoka.
Theft of a snowmobile — Daysland.
Theft of a snowmobile — Bawlf.
Break, enter and theft of a car — Bawlf.
Failure to stop for police — Fort Saskatchewan.
Entering on land on which a line work is situated (Section 26.1 of the Railway Safety Act).
Anyone with any information about the incidents is asked to call the local RCMP or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS.