A collision near Crestomere ended up opening the door for a Ponoka RCMP investigation that led to 88 charges to three individuals.
Ponoka RCMP investigators say a complex investigation started after officers received a complaint on March 16 at 7:22 a.m. that there was a two-vehicle collision near Crestomere, where one truck was attempting to pull another truck out of the ditch.
A series of events followed, and with the assistance of the Ponoka Integrated Traffic Unit plus Rimbey, Maskwacis and Wetaskiwin RCMP detachment members as well as other specialized RCMP units, three men were ultimately arrested. In total, the three men have been linked to 12 different investigations.
Here is their story:
On March 15, Red Deer RCMP received a report of a stolen Ford F-350 and an investigation was launched.
The following day, the first call Ponoka RCMP received on March 16, 2017 at 7:22 a.m., was in relation to the above referenced collision. At 7:51 a.m., Ponoka RCMP received a complaint that a Dodge truck was stolen from the Ponoka County office and a Chevrolet pickup was stolen near an adjacent property.
Prior to arrival of the RCMP, the Dodge truck now towing a trailer with two quads, was freed from the ditch and departed with what was identified as the Ford F-350 stolen from Red Deer. A Chevrolet truck was abandoned at the collision scene. A short time later, the Dodge truck again became stuck in a ditch and when RCMP members arrived, the occupants fled in the stolen Ford F-350 and left the Dodge pickup, say police.
RCMP members later located the Ford F-350 and took three male suspects into custody without any incident.
The Ford F-350 was found to be full of stolen property. The recovered trailer and quad were stolen. As well, the stolen Chevrolet truck abandoned at the initial collision was loaded with stolen property.
The majority of the stolen property and vehicles have been returned to their owners. Some items, including credit cards, are pending return. A shotgun, which was stolen from a shop in Sylvan Lake, was located and retrieved by the RCMP.
Twelve area investigations have been cleared by the RCMP including complaints from Ponoka,Sylvan Lake, Red Deer, Rocky Mountain House, Innisfail and Blackfalds.
All three of the accused were arrested at the scene and face a total of 88 charges. William Wilkie, 46, of Innisfail and 51-year-old William Gladue from Red Deer have been remanded in custody and will appear in Ponoka Provincial Court on March 24.
“We’re always grateful to the public for bringing suspicious activities to the RCMP’s attention” says RCMP Staff Sgt. Mike Numan. “Thanks to the efforts of the many involved RCMP detachments and units, we were able to stop this criminal activity and provide our communities closure on these investigations.”
A third accused was released from custody, but Ponoka RCMP found out March 22 that the individual had provided the identity of a different man. Originally, police believe Miles Appenrodt was among the accused, only to find out that Appenrodt was the victim of identity theft and not involved in any of the alleged crimes.
The man, whose name can't yet be released, was arrested with the other two males and then produced an Alberta driver's licence with Appenrodt's name. The man also contended to be Appenrodt during his time in custody.
A warrant has now been sought for the man in connection with the incident and will face two more charges of personation and possession of an identity document.
The RCMP deeply regrets this error and apologizes to Mr. Appenrodt for the difficulties this has caused.
Ed. note - The original story has been changed to reflect the updated information received from the RCMP regarding the identity theft.