Red Deer RCMP on the prowl last week came across plenty of drugs, stolen vehicles and bad decisions.
In other words, a typical week or so.
The RCMP released its latest weekly arrest roundup as part of Project Pinpoint, a crime reduction strategy focusing on proactive policing by using analytics to identify repeat offenders and crime hot spots.
One offender was lucky not to collide with a police vehicle when he made an ill-advised escape attempt on Wednesday afternoon.
About 4 p.m., members of the RCMP’s Crime Reduction Team were on patrol downtown when they came across a suspect driving a stolen vehicle.
“When police initiated a traffic stop the vehicle briefly attempted to flee, nearly colliding with the police vehicle before coming to a stop,” say police.
“The male driver was arrested without incident and RCMP seized what is believed to be fentanyl, methamphetamine and oxycodone during the arrest.”
A 52-year-old man is facing numerous charges.
On Wednesday night, RCMP took care of some unfinished business when they arrested a suspect in a stolen Dodge Durango that had fled from police two days earlier. An accomplice was left behind that time who had a loaded firearm on him and ended up facing nine charges.
RCMP were staking out the same stolen vehicle when a female suspect came out, hopped in and tried to flee when police moved in. A second police vehicle blocked her in and she surrendered without incident.
A 23-year-old woman is facing numerous charges.
Police patrolling downtown made three more arrests on Sept. 19 after spotting a stolen truck. Two women were arrested at the scene and after a brief foot chase the male driver was nabbed. All three are facing charges including possession of methamphetamine.
Another culprit is facing a robbery charge after allegedly assaulting staff who tried to detain him for shoplifting at a downtown business around 12:30 p.m. The 27-year-old is also charged with failing to comply with probation.
On Sept. 23, a man allegedly went to an acquaintance’s residence, assaulted him and tried to steal his possessions.
He didn’t get far. Police arrested him at a nearby fast food joint in north Red Deer and charged him with assault, theft under $5,000 and several traffic offences.
Hiding nearby proved a bad strategy for a woman on Sept. 28. Police responding to a break and enter in progress around 7 p.m. found a suspect hiding in the bushes at the back of the residence.
A 19-year-old is facing charges of break and enter, possession of break-in instruments and failing to comply with a probation order.