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Trio go on stolen vehicle tour of rural Stettler

Police are asking people to keep their eyes peeled for a stolen car after three suspects went on a vehicle-stealing tour

Police are asking people to keep their eyes peeled for a stolen car after three suspects went on a vehicle-stealing tour of rural Stettler this past weekend.

The three came into the county in a stolen vehicle from Wetaskiwin, which was abandoned and torched on the roadside. The three stole a vehicle from a nearby residence and, after getting it stuck, stole another.

They then drove to another residence, abandoned the vehicle and stole another, and headed to yet another residence where they again abandoned the vehicle before stealing the as yet unaccounted for car.

The car, a black two-door 2005 Chevrolet Cavalier, has an Alberta licence plate BLD 6662. Police are currently investigating and believe the three and the stolen car have left the county.

Suspicious person’s complaint nabs two thieves-to-be

Police received a phone tip from a concerned resident early in the afternoon on Saturday, Jan. 31, about two men loitering suspiciously near the post office.

Police found the two men, who were “very much under the effect of crystal methamphetamines,” according to Stettler RCMP Cpl. Cameron Russell.

According to Russell, the two men had stolen a vehicle earlier in the day from a home in Red Deer before coming to scout the community.

After the arrest, the police found a quantity of crystal methamphetamines, break-in tools and stolen property in the car.

A 42-year-old man, a former Stettler resident, is charged with a count of mischief, though his companion, a 36-year-old Calgary man, earned himself two counts of mischief, a charge each of possession of narcotics and possession of break-in tools, and 10 counts of possession of stolen property. He also has many breach of condition charges levied against him, Russell said.

“They had full intentions to be in town a while to see what they could steal,” Russell said.

Police are preparing for a possibility of an increase in some petty crimes as layoffs in the oil industry continue.

“We’re not expecting a huge influx (of crime), but we’re ready,” Russell said. He explained that for those who work in the industry who have drug habits and lose much of their income, a search for ways to feed the habit can see to an increase in crime.

Planes collide near Bashaw

Two home-built kit planes came down hard northwest of Bashaw on Sunday, Feb. 1, sending one man to the hospital with serious leg injuries.

The two planes were single-engine home-built kit aircrafts and were travelling parallel to each other when they touched, sending the aircrafts reeling.

One pilot was able to land his craft in a field near the intersection of Township Road 424 and Range Road 221, while the other had a less controlled landing nearby.

“They didn’t ‘fall out of the sky,’” Bashaw RCMP detachment commander Sgt. Cameron Paul said. “It was more of a very rough landing.”

Paul said the use of home-assembled kit planes is not uncommon as they are less expensive for people to build their own. They can vary in size, materials and construction, but are subject to rules set down by Transportation Canada, which has taken over the investigation.

The planes were travelling from Carstairs to Red Deer Lake when they collided, resulting one pilot being evacuated to University of Alberta Hospital in Edmonton by STARS air ambulance. The other pilot, who landed safely, was treated by paramedics at the scene for minor injuries.