Young hockey players help nab goalie equipment thief in Penticton

Sharp-eyed hockey players visiting Penticton on the weekend spotted a man making off with goalie equipment.

It had been left outside their hotel room to air dry.

The thief was spotted at around 9 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 21, by some of the players who followed him at a distance as he headed towards Riverside Drive with some of the gear until they spotted an RCMP officer and asked for help, according to an RCMP media release.

“We waved down an officer who immediately helped us catch the guy,” Braxton Tessman, goalie for the U18 North Okanagan Knights, said in a news release. “It was the craziest thing.”

A 31-year-old Penticton was arrested and later released from custody.

“No one wants to travel to a community and become a victim of theft, especially that of a youth, who relies on the sporting gear to remain active and do something they love," Penticton RCMP Const. Kelly Brett said in the release.

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