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Chilliwack man slumped over steering wheel of stolen SUV, later rams police vehicle, gets arrested

Spike belt, stun gun used to arrest man after citizen reports ‘peculiar’ behaviour, says Chilliwack RCMP
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Signage at the RCMP Pacific Region Training Centre in Chilliwack on April 1, 2021. (Jenna Hauck/ Chilliwack Progress file)

A man with a Canada-wide warrant was arrested and a stolen vehicle was recovered thanks to a vigilant resident who noticed “peculiar” behaviour in a Chilliwack neighbourhood earlier this week, RCMP said.

The citizen called police after they saw the 37-year-old man slumped over the steering wheel of a black Chevrolet SUV parked in a driveway on Cora Avenue in Chilliwack on Monday, Jan. 3.

The vehicle had been reported stolen earlier that day.

“Our officer located the individual who appeared to be unconscious and remained unresponsive to police,” said RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Mike Rail.

Once roused, the man in the SUV rammed a police vehicle and fled, racing down the street.

The Lower Mainland District Integrated Police Dog Section and Chilliwack Community Response Team were called in to help.

It wasn’t until half an hour later when police found the SUV with the man still inside. He was stopped at the intersection of Strathcona Road and Fairview Drive.

Police immobilized the vehicle using a spike belt, and used a stun gun to take the combative man into custody, Rail said.

The Chilliwack man was connected to an outstanding Canada-wide warrant of arrest on a separate matter and he remains in custody.

“Fortunately no one was injured during the event,” Rail said. “An alert citizen reporting unusual behaviour to police coupled with the immediate response of officers safely concluded what could have been an even more hazardous situation.”

RCMP remind everyone who witnesses anything they believe to be suspicious in nature to contact police at 604-792-4611 or call Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS).

RELATED: 1 man dead following early-morning stabbing in Abbotsford


 

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Email: jenna.hauck@theprogress.com
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Jenna Hauck

About the Author: Jenna Hauck

I started my career at The Chilliwack Progress in 2000 as a photojournalist.
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