Updated March 5, 1 p.m.
Enderby resident Mitchell Roland Szekely is facing three charges relating to the theft of a truck, trailer and two snowmobiles from Revelstoke.
On Wednesday, March 5, Sicamous RCMP Sgt. Dave Dubnyk released the name of the 32-year-old Szekely, arrested by police on Feb. 23 after he was seen driving through the community with a suspicious vehicle.
When police tried to stop the vehicle, he drove off, making repeated attempts to evade the pursuing officers before losing control of the truck and driving into a ditch. Szekely then fled on foot. He was tracked by police dog to a motorhome on a nearby property where he was arrested.
Szekely now faces charges of breach of probation, possession of stolen property over $5,000 and trying to evade police. He is scheduled to make his next court appearance in Salmon Arm via video conference on March 18.
A police dog led Sicamous RCMP to the location of a 32-year-old Enderby man who fled on foot Sunday afternoon after ditching a truck, trailer and two snowmobiles stolen from Revelstoke.
On Feb. 23 at approximately 3:20 a.m, Sicamous RCMP saw a suspicious truck and trailer travelling through the community. When officers tried to stop the vehicle, the driver drove off. Sgt. Dave Dubnyk says police followed the vehicle for a short distance as the driver made repeated attempts to evade his pursuers. Eventually, the suspect driver lost control of the vehicle on a side road. It slid into a ditch and the single occupant then fled on foot.
Dubnyk says the man was then tracked by police dog to a nearby property where he was found hiding in a motorhome.
The truck, trailer and sleds were registered out of Saskatchewan and stolen from Revelstoke that morning.
“We have stepped up our efforts this winter in order to minimize the amount of thefts, and to intercept the vehicles that have been stolen, and this weekend’s arrest was a direct result of those efforts,” said Dubnyk in a news release.
Dubnyk says Sicamous, Revelstoke and Salmon Arm RCMP have been sharing information and working together throughout the winter.
“We have checked hundreds of trucks and trailers passing through in the middle of the night,” said Dubnyk. “We will continue to do so throughout the remainder of the winter and early spring.”
The Enderby man was scheduled to appear in Salmon Arm Provincial Court on Feb. 25.
Dubnyk reminds those coming to snowmobile in the area to take extra precautions when parking their trucks and trailers for the night. This includes parking in a well lit area, using theft prevention options such as alarms, steering wheel clubs and trailer wheel locks and.
“Taking a few minutes to unhook something on the engine to disable the towing vehicle is also very effective in theft prevention,” said Dubnyk.
