A vehicle with occupants hanging out of the windows while checking door handles of cars parked along the road, prompted Cochrane RCMP to River Heights community around 2 a.m. on Wednesday. When RCMP located the car and attempted to stop it, the driver fled. Police found it shortly after, though it was unoccupied. Anticipating the suspected thieves would attempt to steal another car in the area, the police waited in the area. Police then attempted to stop a suspicious Ford Edge and it struck another parked vehicle while trying to leave the subdivision. On the Ford's second attempt to leave, it was stopped by tire deflation devices deployed at the entrance into River Heights. The suspect driver was arrested without incident. Numerous charges are pending against a 25-year-old male from Olds.
At 3:40 am detachment members were then alerted to a second suspicious vehicle in the Bow Ridge / Jumping Pound area also checking whether or not vehicles parked along the road had locked doors. This suspicious vehicle was not located and no further arrests were made.
Throughout the day the Cochrane RCMP received 12 further reports of items being stolen from vehicles in the Fireside, River Heights, Jumping Pound, Bow Ridge and Sunset areas of Cochrane.
“This group of individuals moved swiftly from subdivision to subdivision,” said Cst. Kary Moore with the Cochrane RCMP.The Cochrane RCMP would again like to remind Cochrane residents to please lock your vehicles. This group of individuals were looking for easy targets in unlocked vehicles and were successful, they were able to enter at least 12 vehicles and steal items from within.
