An Abbotsford man recently recorded his 21st conviction for impaired driving – believed to be the highest number in Canadian history.
Roy Heide, 66, was sentenced Dec. 15 to just under five years in jail in relation to a crash at 7:40 p.m. on Aug. 15, 2022 in the 1800 block of Clearbrook Road.
Const. Art Stele, media officer with the Abbotsford Police Department (APD), said on that day, Heide was riding a motorcycle when he crashed and his passenger was seriously injured.
Heide tried to ride away before police arrived, but he was identified with the assistance of witnesses.
Stele said Heide’s blood alcohol content was twice the legal limit when he was arrested.
Heide pleaded guilty Dec. 15 in Abbotsford provincial court to impaired driving, driving while disqualified and driving while prohibited.
According to provincial court records, Heide has been sentenced to four prior jail terms – two years less a day in 1998, six months each in 1999 and 2000, and five years in 2001 for three offences, including impaired driving causing bodily harm and leaving the scene of a crash.
He was also issued a 25-year driving ban in 1998 under the province’s Motor Vehicle Act.
Heide’s record also includes multiple criminal driving bans and breaches of those bans.
Stele said in 2022 the APD removed 870 impaired drivers from local streets. So far in 2023, almost 800 impaired drivers have been caught.
Sgt. Paul Walker, with the APD’s traffic enforcement unit, said the community is encouraged to continue reporting impaired drivers.
”Our frontline officers continue to be out enforcing impaired driving laws and taking a zero-tolerance approach to driving while impaired,” he said.
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