Break-ins and car thefts keep Penticton RCMP busy

PENTICTON – Penticton RCMP spent another week of investigating residential break-ins and vehicle thefts.

Cpl. Don Wrigglesworth says police recovered a stolen vehicle Jan. 26 after a resident who was snowshoeing in the Lost Moose Lodge area on Carmi Road came across a 1997 brown Chevy Blazer reported stolen on Jan. 2. Heavy snow hindered recovery of the vehicle until the following day.

A break and enter was discovered on Lee Avenue on Jan. 26 by a resident housesitting for his neighbour, Wrigglesworth says. An exterior entry door in the garage was kicked in while the occupants were out of the country. It has yet to be determined what was taken. The incident occurred in an area where other break and enters were reported the previous week.

A break-in was reported on Churchill Avenue on Jan. 26 where sometime between 9 a.m. and noon Jan. 27 electronic equipment was reported stolen, he says.

Two Ford pickup trucks were stolen overnight Jan. 28 were recovered the next day. A truck used in an attempted smash and grab at Cherry Lane Mall Jan. 29 was found to have been stolen from an East Eckhardt Avenue residence.

On Jan. 29, a 2007 Hyundai Accent with license plate number 968 GVN was stolen from the Ju-jitsu studio parking lot at Wade Avenue and Power Street. The keys may have been left in the vehicle, Wrigglesworth says.

Penticton Dairy Queen was broken into after thieves broke glass at the north entrance door at 1:50 a.m., Jan. 31, Wrigglesworth says. A donation box for the Children’s Hospital was the only thing stolen. Video surveillance revealed a man wearing a two-tone sweater with his hood up. The incident is still under investigation.

And on Feb. 1, a 2001 blue Ford Windstar with license plate AM8 32G was stolen from a Columbia Street driveway.

To contact the reporter for this story, email Steve Arstad at sarstad@infonews.ca or call 250-488-3065. To contact the editor, email mjones@infonews.ca or call 250-718-2724.