By Jim Elliot
A province-wide Amber Alert reached its conclusion in Sicamous on Friday Nov. 4.
The RCMP de-activated the amber alert for Sofia and Mateo and their mother April Pastor-Ruiz after the trio were stopped by an RCMP officer near the Esso station in Sicamous at approximately 9 p.m. on Nov. 4.
An RCMP spokesperson said the stop occurred without incident.
The Amber Alert was issued by the Coquitlam RCMP at approximately 4:30 p.m. on Nov. 4.
Pastor-Ruiz alegedly abducted the children near Fraser Avenue and Larch Way in Coquitlam.
36-year-old Pastor-Ruiz, is in police custody and charges are pending. The children were found safe and will be reunited with their family.
A description of Pastor-Ruiz and her children, as well as the vehicle they were believed to be travelling in was circulated on Nov. 4. The vehicle was described as a newer-model, four-door Ford Focus hatchback. No license plate number was released.
Acting on the vehicle description, a Salmon Arm RCMP member observed the vehicle on the highway heading towards Sicamous and relayed the information to Sicamous RCMP.
Amber Alert information about abducted children is circulated to all law enforcement agencies in the province.
This is the 18th time an Amber Alert has been declared in B.C. since the program was launched in 2004. Every Amber Alert has resulted in the subject individuals being successfully located.
