Police had to move quickly last week after a drunken man stole a police cruiser and tried to evade capture by travelling at speeds in excess of 200 km/h.
The event unfolded April 9 at approximately 5 p.m. when a Mountie was attempting to arrest two drunken men near the downtown area of Ponoka. One male fled from the officer, who tried to catch him, and the second, a 39-year-old man from Maskwacis, jumped into the cruiser and took off.
Police say he was eastbound on Highway 53 at a high rate of speed but they were able to track him with equipment built in the vehicle.
Witnesses say they heard the man speaking into the police radio but his speech was garbled and hard to decipher, while officers tried to speak with him.
He was found in the driver’s seat in the ditch near Range Road 254 after the cruiser struck an approach and crashed. The vehicle suffered extensive damage but the culprit is believed to have received only minor injuries.
Police have charged Paul Rabbit with theft of a motor vehicle, driving while disqualified, dangerous driving and impaired driving. He was remanded in custody and the date of his court appearance was not available at press time. Rabbit provided blood alcohol samples of .18 and .17.
Pursuit ends in capture of Red Deer man
A routine traffic stop resulted in a pursuit that saw police from several municipalities helping to capture two suspects.
Ponoka RCMP attempted to stop the driver of a white Ford F350 May 9 at 12:30 a.m. upon seeing the running lights were not functioning. The truck was southbound on Highway 2A near the Ponoka Airport.
After flashing of the emergency lights by the police, the vehicle is reported to have sped off with the police giving a chase, which was halted after the truck was seen getting on to the lane of the oncoming traffic, forcing another vehicle into the breakdown lane.
The Mountie notified Lacombe City Police of the issue and they saw the truck but lost it on Highway 2A in Lacombe after it sped off accelerating to above 140 km/h. The pickup was later located in Blackfalds at the Boston Pizza by police officers and it was determined the truck was stolen from Red Deer.
Police have charged 50-year-old John Goodheart with possession of stolen property over $5,000 and three counts of possession of stolen property under $5,000. He also received charges for dangerous operation of a motor vehicle, flight from police and failing to comply with conditions. He was remanded in custody and faces Ponoka court on May 23.
A 33-year-old-female passenger from Red Deer was also in the vehicle at the time. She faces the same charges of possession of stolen property and flight from police.
Impaired drivers
Police dealt with a few impaired drivers last week:
The first was May 11 at 3:50 a.m. A 40-year-old man from Olds was stopped by police in a black 2002 Ford SRW and he provided blood-alcohol samples of .16 and .15.
The second was May 12 at 11 p.m. when a 30-year-old Maskwacis man was stopped in a 1999 Chevy Cavalier on Highway 2A. He provided samples of .18 and .17.
Ponoka Fire Department busy
A home fire alarm May 9 turned into a real need for the Ponoka Fire Department. The call came in at 8:30 a.m. of a fire alarm at a home south of Ponoka. The fire department believes the fire started in the kitchen and caused extensive damage to the kitchen and extensive smoke damage to the rest of the house.
The fire department also dealt with grass fires and a motor vehicle collision on Highway 2A at approximately 6:30 p.m. May 9.
Police handled 49 calls over the course of the week.
If you have information on any crime call Ponoka RCMP at 403-783-4472 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.