A rash of vehicle thefts in Westlock County may have come to an end with the recent recovery of a large amount of stolen property and the arrest of five people believed to have been involved in the thefts.
County resident Larry Arndt said he hopes this will mean the end of the thefts that have rural residents on edge. He and many of his neighbours have had vehicles, diesel fuel and other items stolen from their yards over the past couple months.
“They’ve been going through the back fields and the yards; it doesn’t matter what time of day,” he said. “One guy was in his house when they came into his yard.”
On Dec. 27, however, police made a significant break in the case. According to an RCMP press release, officers were called to a rural area in Dapp in the early morning hours about some suspicious activity and vehicles.
When they arrived they found a tractor, trailer and a pickup truck that had previously been reported stolen from the Westlock and Barrhead areas. An investigation lead RCMP to three suspects, two of who were driving stolen all-terrain vehicles (ATVs).
Many other stolen items, such as clothing, tools, and a bobcat bucket and grapple were recovered. Further investigation, including the continuation of an investigation into stolen ATVs that began in the summer of 2010, resulted in the arrest of two more suspects. The investigation is ongoing, the press release says.
“Hopefully it’s stopped, who knows. You have to keep on living,” Arndt said.
He added that some residents had begun to fear for their safety. Furthermore, there has been some indication that people were getting restless waiting for police to catch the thieves.
“Some guys have been involved in chases themselves, to try and find them,” he said.
As far he knows, though, nobody has managed to catch up to the criminals and if they did, he doesn’t know what might happen.
“Somebody might get hurt and somebody might get charged, but it would be the wrong person,” he said.
Westlock RCMP Staff Sgt. Bryan Clayton said taking matters into one’s own hands is never a good idea.
“That’s certainly not something we’d be advocating at all,” he said. “What we do advocate is just to be on the lookout for any suspicious activity and to watch out for your neighbours’ property.”
People are permitted to use “as much force as is reasonable” to protect their personal property, Clayton said, but that would never involve the use of a weapon.
“I can’t think of any situation where the use of a firearm would be considered reasonable where it comes to defending your property,” he said.
Clayton added he does understand why people might tend to get frustrated with a string of thefts like the one seen in Westlock and Barrhead counties over the past few months.
“I do understand that these thefts can be frustrating for people in the whole detachment area,” he said. “People have items stolen and they know someone has been on their property without their permission; you feel like you’ve been violated in some way.”
Despite the recent rash of thefts, however, vehicle thefts in 2010 were at a level lower than was seen in 2009, but not as low as in 2008.
“It was quite a bit less in 2008, and it jumped up in 2009 and continued on in 2010,” he said.
Within the Westlock detachment there were 60 vehicle thefts reported in 2010, compared to 71 in 2009 and only 40 in 2008, Clayton said.
Clayton said he encourages people to take preventative measures, including locking up valuables and keeping an eye on your neighbours’ property.
Five individuals have been charged with several offences each.
George Bowles, 33, of Westlock has been charged with four counts of possession of stolen property, possession of stolen property, wearing a disguise in the commission of an offence and three traffic charges.
Clinton Galliford, 30, of Westlock has been charged with five counts of possession of stolen property, three counts of failing to comply with release conditions, two counts of wearing a disguise in the commission of an offence, two counts of possession of break-in tools, evading police and breach of probation.
Lorraine Cardinal, 23, of Westlock has been charged with two counts of possession of stolen property, one charge of evading police, possession of a controlled substance and two counts of failing to comply with release conditions.
Andrew Lysohirka, 19, of Perryvale has been charged with possession of stolen property, theft over $5,000, two counts of failing to comply with release conditions, mischief to property and possession of break-in tools.
Ryan Round, 19, of Westlock has been charged with five counts of possession of stolen property.
All five individuals made first appearances on these matters in Westlock Provincial Court on Jan. 5 and had their matters adjourned.
