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Chase RCMP see summertime spike in property crime

Thieves targeting fuel, vehicles and more in Chase, South Shuswap
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Chase RCMP are seeing an increase in property crime which coincides with warmer weather and an increase in summer traffic.

“The Chase detachment is responding with increased patrols and efforts to identify suspects involved. Police are asking the public’s assistance in combating property crime by immediately reporting any suspicious activity,” a press release from the RCMP reads.

One of the property crime incidents police are looking into is a string of attempted vehicle thefts over the Victoria Day long weekend. On May 21, the RCMP received four separate reports of vehicles being broken into over the long weekend and their ignitions damaged. The vehicles were parked on Shuswap Avenue, Shepherd Road, Willow Street and Hysop Road in Chase.

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A vehicle which was stolen from the Chase area was recovered by the Vernon RCMP on May 15. The owner told police the black Chevrolet pickup truck had been parked at a business on Chase’s Shuswap Avenue the night before it was discovered in Vernon and confirmed stolen. The owner also told the RCMP that a white GMC was parked in the space where his truck had been stolen from. The white GMC had been reported stolen earlier that day from Kamloops.

A blue 1999 Dodge 2500 pickup bearing BC licence plate EL2605 was stolen from a residence on Okanagan Avenue on May 7 and remains outstanding.

A pair of motorcycles were also stolen in the Chase area in recent weeks. On May 10, the RCMP were told unknown suspects stole a 65cc Husqvarna; it was returned to the owner several days later. A 2006 Honda RCF 450R with the number 69 on the handlebars remains outstanding after it was taken from a property on Dunkirk Road in Sorrento on May 13.

Thieves targeted fuel in incidents on May 15 and 16. More than 1,000 litres of gasoline were taken from outdoor tanks at Adrenaline Auto Recyclers on Aylmer Road in Chase on May 15. On May 16, the RCMP received a report that a Lee Creek business had been targeted by thieves who stole a large amount of gas from various vehicles on the property over a few days.

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Responding to a complaint about a suspicious vehicle parked on Little River Road in Sorrento on May 17, Chase RCMP recovered a van that was reported stolen to Vancouver police. A 49-year-old man of no fixed address from the Vancouver area was arrested for possession of the stolen van.

Anyone with information regarding these investigations or any other crimes is asked to contact the Chase Detachment at 250-679-3221 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.


@SalmonArm
jim.elliot@saobserver.net

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Jim Elliot

About the Author: Jim Elliot

I’m a B.C. transplant here in Whitehorse at The News telling stories about the Yukon's people, environment, and culture.
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