Low speed pursuit ends in arrest: Bonnyville RCMP

A man driving a “suspicious vehicle” was arrested in Bonnyville on Sunday after what police are calling a “low speed pursuit.”

The Bonnyville RCMP says they received a complaint of a “suspicious vehicle” at the Kopala Building in Bonnyville.

When officers arrived, they say the vehicle was not at the scene.

Meanwhile, they soon located the vehicle, a Dodge Ram 3500 pick-up, and saw it driving in reverse at a speed of roughly 25-30 kilometres per hour, eastbound on Highway 28 towards Bonnyville.

“The truck had lost a tire, and there were sparks flying everywhere,” Mounties said in a police release, adding that many other drivers left the highway to avoid getting hit.

“Due to the risk to users of the Highway, officers initiated a pursuit.”

However, officers say one civilian vehicle jumped into the fray and attempted to stop the suspect vehicle, with a video on Facebook showing them using a pit maneuver, ramming into the vehicle on 70 Street, which is a road next to Highway 28.

Then, they say the suspect drove into an officer’s vehicle, “rendering it inoperable.”

“Luckily, there were no injuries, and the civilian was not harmed, but police do not recommend that civilians get in the middle of incidents such as this,” said RCMP Corp. Gina Slaney to CityNews.

Then, police say they initiated a “high-risk” arrest and took the suspect into custody. They add the vehicle was determined to have been stolen from a Bonnyville business at around 1 a.m. on Sunday.

Cold Lake resident, 30-year-old Simon Erwin Cardinal, faces 11 charges, which include assault with a weapon, operating a vehicle in a dangerous manner, and possession of stolen property over $5,000.

He was remanded into custody after a Judicial Interim Release Hearing and is expected to appear in court on Aug. 1.