By Troy Gillard

LACOMBE COUNTY

Peace officer injured after vehicle rammed by suspected thieves

Oct 8, 2020 | 2:54 PM

Two men have been charged after a Lacombe County Peace Officer had their vehicle rammed into during an incident last weekend.

On Oct. 1 at 8:30 a.m., RCMP say the peace officer came upon a pick-up truck attempting to pull another out of the ditch near Township Road 412 on Range Road 271 in Lacombe County, northwest of Lacombe.

The peace officer was seated in their vehicle when Mounties say one of the pick-up trucks, driven by a 28-year-old male, rammed into it before fleeing the scene.

When a civilian witness left their vehicle to check on the CPO, RCMP say the second suspect male, as 32-year-old, stole the civilian’s vehicle and fled.

A short time later, the first suspect returned to the location and drove towards the peace offiver who was outside standing on the road, forcing them to take evasive action to avoid being hit. The suspect then fled the scene heading eastbound on Range Road 412.

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RCMP in Blackfalds, Innisfail, Didsbury, Olds and Airdrie were deployed to search for the suspects.

Mounties say a number of sightings of the suspect vehicles occurred on Highway 11 and Highway 2 that included one of the vehicles being abandoned and a theft of a vehicle occurring in a rural area near Innisfail.

After police stopped the newly stolen vehicle using a spike belt, the suspect ditched it and tried to steal yet another vehicle from a nearby rural property but injured himself while breaking the glass on it. That’s when he was arrested and taken to hospital for treatment of minor injuries.

Jordan McConnell, 28, of no fixed address is charged with assault with a weapon, possession of stolen property over $5,000, operate a conveyance in a manner dangerous to the public, operate a conveyance involved in an accident and fail to stop and offer assistance. McConnell was remanded in custody to speak to bail on Oct. 16 in Red Deer provincial court.

On Oct. 2, Edmonton Police Service advised RCMP that the civilian’s stolen vehicle had been located and that their canine unit had located a suspect of stealing it. Blackfalds RCMP used video footage to confirm the suspect was the second individual involved in the previous day’s incident.

Jorge McConnell, 32, of no fixed address is charged with theft of a motor vehicle and possession of stolen property under $5,000. He was remanded in custody with a bail hearing scheduled for Oct. 13 in Red Deer.

The Lacombe County CPO attended hospital and was treated for injuries and released.

“We are thankful no one was seriously injured in these events,” says Staff Sergeant Dan Martin, Blackfalds RCMP Detachment Commander. “The quick response of officers from multiple detachments and agencies resulted in the arrest of the two suspects and prevented further offences from occurring.”