The theft of an expensive powerboat from a Sicamous dock was thwarted when a friend of its rightful owner spotted the thief boating in circles just off shore.
At 7 p.m. on Monday, July 8, Sicamous RCMP received a report of a theft in progress at a public wharf in the Sicamous channel. The caller told police that a man had boarded his 24-foot power boat, which had been left with the keys in the ignition, and took it out onto Shuswap Lake.
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The boat owner also called a friend who was on the lake in his own boat. The owner’s friend tracked down the stolen vessel which was being driven in circles just off the beach in Sicamous. The friend then flagged down the man at the controls of the stolen boat and convinced him to return to the dock where he was arrested by waiting RCMP officers.
The stolen vessel, valued at more than $80,000, was undamaged.
The 33-year-old Penticton resident who took the boat was held in jail overnight and released the following day on a promise to face a charge of theft over $5,000 at an Aug. 13 first court appearance in Salmon Arm.
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“This theft serves as a reminder to boat owners to ensure their vessels are secured,with the keys removed when docked as a means of preventing similar crimes,” said Sgt Murray McNeil of the Sicamous RCMP.
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