Policing in Alberta to September 11. 2013

RCMP press releases

• RCMP Musical Ride Performs to Welcoming Crowd in High River
• Brush Fire in Wood Buffalo
• The Long Ride Home
• RCMP Canmore Investigates Thefts at Vehicle Dealerships
• Seven youths arrested and charged in Beaumont stolen pickup truck incident

RCMP Musical Ride Performs to Welcoming Crowd in High River

A crowd of more than 2,400 people was on hand last night in High River, Alberta to watch the last performance of the RCMP Musical Ride’s 2013 season. The event was added to this year’s schedule in July, after local RCMP officers asked the Musical Ride to consider a benefit performance in High River on the way back to Ottawa from its two-month long tour of British Columbia.

Musical Ride pre-tour planning is usually conducted one year prior to the actual tour. However, the High River request coincided with a pre-arranged stabling stop at Spruce Meadows in Calgary. This allowed the ride to waive the stabling and feed costs that are usually covered by local organizers. The High River Agricultural Society offered to take on all of the other responsibilities associated with the event. Members of the Musical Ride volunteered their time to perform in High River on their scheduled day off. Admission to the event was free with cash donations made at the door going to local flood relief.

“The High River Agricultural Society has been terrific. There is a lot of behind the scenes work that goes into bringing the Musical Ride to town, and they handled all of that,” said S/Sgt. Ian Shardlow of High River Detachment. “This was the first official community event since the flooding, and the goal was to boost spirits. I think that happened here tonight.”

The performance began with Superintendent Marty Chesser, Officer in Charge of the Musical Ride giving the official salute to local dignitaries including High River Deputy Mayor Al Brander; Wade Nelson, President of the High River Agricultural Society; and Bill Akins, General Manager of the High River Agricultural Society. In a break from tradition, he also saluted the entire crowd, in recognition of the tenacity demonstrated by the citizens of High River in the aftermath of the floods.

“I love my job and tonight was one of those nights that was made special. On the march past, we saluted the entire crowd,” said Supt. Chesser. “The positive response was overwhelming.”

The Musical Ride visits approximately 40 venues annually, and travels to every province on a four-year rotational basis. Every year during the tour, the Musical Ride assists local communities and charities to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars. The tentative 2014 Musical Ride schedule includes performances in Alberta and Quebec. Dates and locations are yet to be determined.

Stock photos of the RCMP Musical Ride are attached.

For more information, visit http://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/mr-ce/index-eng.htm

The Long Ride Home

Around 7:00 pm on September 10th, Spruce Grove/Stony Plain RCMP were on patrol along Highway 16 West of Stony Plain when they observed a truck pulling a horse trailer without a licence plate.

The male driver had consumed alcohol, and registered a "caution" reading on the Approved Screening Device.  A caution means a blood alcohol content of 60 to 100 milligrams of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood.  As such, he was given a 72 hour licence suspension, and his truck and trailer were towed.

The male was quite industrious, and chose to saddle up his horse from the trailer, and ride the 20 miles home in the ditch.  It would likely have been a better idea to utilize the horse in the first place!

This is certainly not intended to make light of impaired driving, but rather shows a creative response to the dilemma he faced after making some poor choices.

Brush Fire in Wood Buffalo

On September 10, 2013, shortly at 6:30 pm, the Wood Buffalo RCMP was called to assist Regional Emergency Services with respect to a brush fire that was reportedly burning in the Wood Buffalo area of Fort McMurray. Approximately 50 homes were evacuated out of safety precautions given the high winds and risk of fire spreading quickly. RCMP members, with the assistance of Wood Buffalo Bylaw Services, also aided with scene containment and traffic control.

At this point there have been no reports of injuries or structural damage to homes or buildings in the area. Currently the fire is reported to be under control and residents have been allowed to return to their homes. Emergency Services will continue to monitor the area and affected areas. The cause of the fire remains under investigation as the RCMP works together with their partners at the Fire Department.

RCMP officers & EPS Air 1 working together in stopping fleeing stolen vehicle

On September 10th, at approximately 02:30 am, Beaumont RCMP officers responded to a complaint of a hit and run in the vicinity 47 Street and 52 Avenue in Beaumont. The caller reported that a pickup truck with camper had just backed into a motorcycle parked in a driveway and then taken off without stopping.

Beaumont RCMP members responded to the call and while doing patrols, the officer soon located what was believed to be the offending vehicle near the Beaumont Youth Centre. Upon officer's activation of the police emergency equipment, the vehicle took off westbound to 52nd Avenue towards 55 Street. It was soon realized that the vehicle had recently been stolen out of Edmonton. The stolen vehicle travelled south into Bellevue Park onto the walking trail, proceeded west on 43 Avenue and then southbound on 50 Street out of Beaumont.

A short pursuit had been initiated, however the Edmonton Police Service helicopter Air 1, which had been in the area at the time, took over the monitoring of the stolen vehicle. Under the close eye of EPS officers in Air 1, the stolen vehicle continued east and south of Beaumont. RCMP Leduc officers who were assisting, deployed a spike belt on highway 623 at rural road 230, and the stolen vehicle which was disabled when driving over the spike belt, came to a stop approximately 1.5 kilometres further. The driver and six occupants fled on foot into the bushes but were soon located by RCMP Police Service Dog who had attended to the location. It was soon discovered that all seven youths from Edmonton were between the ages of 13 and 17. All were arrested and remain in custody awaiting Judicial Interim Hearing.

Beaumont RCMP officers would like to thank the Edmonton Police Service helicopter Air 1 and officers as well as Leduc RCMP officers for their assistance in this matter.

Seven youths have now been charged in relation to the incident.  Possession of stolen property, failure to stop after hitting a parked motorcycle, fleeing from police are only some of the charges these youths will have to face when appearing in court on 13 September, 2013 in Leduc Provincial Court.

Four youths remain in custody until their first appearance while the others have been released to either parents or legal guardians.

RCMP Canmore Investigates Thefts at Vehicle Dealerships

On August 29th, 2013 during the early morning hours, suspects attended a local vehicle dealership, damaged vehicles to gain access to vehicle jacks, and removed rims and tires from the vehicles. On September 5th, 2013 Canmore RCMP received a call that suspects attended another local dealership during the early morning hours and stole rims and tires from vehicles on the lot in a similar manner to the previous report. Canmore RCMP is investigating, but no suspects have been identified to date.

The Canmore RCMP requests the public’s help in providing information on these occurrences or any criminal activity. If you wish to remain anonymous, call Crime Stoppers at 1.800.222.8477 or report it online at www.tipsubmit.com.  If the information leads to an arrest or recovery of stolen property, tipsters are eligible for a cash reward of up to $2,000.00.