Three people suspected of stealing a car and construction materials evaded capture by Squamish RCMP Friday (Feb. 25) in a bizarre pursuit which included one man swimming to the west side of the Squamish River to avoid police.
The RCMP in Whistler notified the Squamish RCMP just before the noon hour a vehicle filled with stolen construction material was driving toward Squamish.
Cpl. Dave Ritchie said the vehicle was located just north of Squamish.
"We intercepted the vehicle near Brohm Lake," said Ritchie. "Our member followed the vehicle at normal speeds."
A roadblock was put in place at Depot Road, Ritchie said. The suspect vehicle, a 1982 grey Toyota Celica, turned off Hwy. 99 and onto Squamish Valley Road so the police roadblock moved over to Government Road north of Brackendale Elementary School while the suspect vehicle was followed closely at regular speeds.
Ritchie said when police sirens and lights were activated near the cemetery the suspect vehicle sped down a rough dirt road south of the Squamish Airport.
According to Ritchie, the suspect driver had no regard for the vehicle.
"The vehicle was stolen Feb. 21 from Loggers Lane by the Yacht Club," Ritchie said. The vehicle belonged to a Squamish resident.Police vehicles couldn't navigate the rough road to the point where one police car broke down and blocked the route. Two males and a female abandoned the suspect vehicle and fled.
Ritchie said a Conservation Officer Service vehicle was in the area and the RCMP asked the CO to help search for the suspects.
One of the suspects was spotted coming out of the Squamish River just north of Fisherman's Park in Brackendale at a place known as Wimpy's Landing by Squamish Nation members. According to a Squamish Nation Peacekeeper at the scene, the suspect went back into the water after he realized he was spotted. The suspect swam to the remote east side of the river and scrambled up into the dense bush, said the Peacekeeper.
Three people stood on the east bank of the Squamish River at the point where the suspect was spotted. RCMP Cpl. Jim Griffin, the Peacekeeper and the conservation officer watched the west shore of the river for any signs of movement by the suspect while a search team was assembled.
Ritchie said with the help of Brackendale area residents who knew what was going on, the other two suspects were spotted in a number of places around Brackendale. Despite resident help the pair was not located.
The man who went to the west side of the river also evaded detection despite a significant RCMP attempt to find him.Ritchie said a dog service team was called in from Chilliwack to help.
An attempt was also made to bring a police helicopter to the scene but Ritchie said fog in Vancouver prevented the helicopter from taking off.
While the dog team was driving from Chilliwack, a DFO boat was launched at the Squamish Yacht Club and brought to the point where the suspect was last seen. The DFO vessel arrived at 2:25 p.m.
Four law enforcement officials in the boat tried to entice the suspect to give himself up. Their offers to help the suspect get warm again produced no response.
The police dog team arrived at 3:05 p.m. The dog, the handler and two other members of the RCMP were taken across the river to search for the suspect. The group slipped into the dense brush and searched the steep area for more than an hour but came back down with the light fading and no suspect in custody.
According to Ritchie, the RCMP learned from sources the trio was all accounted for.
At last word, the threesome was still at large. Police continue to search for them.
"We have the vehicle and it is sitting here while we wait for the Ident [identification] team to look at it," Ritchie said. "We haven't touched it but there appears to be I.D., clothes and construction material inside."
