Monday, February 5, 2007

O.P.P. CRUISER ONE OF FIVE CRASHES YESTERDAY

Goulais River, Ont.,

An n O.P.P. cruiser was involved in one of the five crashes that police were called to since yesterday morning.

Yesterday at about 3:00 p.m. an officer was traveling on Thielman Road in Goulais River. The cruiser met a pick up truck on a curve and the officer had to swerve into the snow bank to avoid a collision. The cruiser entered the ditch and stuck a culvert buried under the snow.

Most of the damage was to the under carriage of the cruiser. No one was injured in the crash but the police car had to be towed from the scene. The collision is still under investigation.

Since Friday afternoon until this morning, the total number of weather related crashes within the Sault Ste Marie OPP patrol area now totals seventeen. Luckily, no one was injured in any of the collisions.

Highway 17 has re-opened

Road Closure Advisory

The Ontario Provincial Police advise the public of the following road closure.

Location: Hwy 17 between Batchawana and Wawa

Detachment area: SSM and Wawa

Time of road closure: 1827 hrs

Reason for the closure: Weather related

Detour: (if available)

Estimated duration of closure: Unknown at this time

Time road reopened: (will advise )

IMPAIRED DRIVER AND PASSENGER PEPPER SPRAYED

Garden River First Nation, Ont

Police were forced to pepper spray a Garden River man and one of his passengers after being stopped for Impaired Driving.

On Saturday Feb 4, 2007 at about 12:30 p.m. an officer with the Sault Ste Marie OPP detachment was on patrol of Hwy 17 in Garden River. The officer was following a pick up truck that appeared to be having trouble maintaining lane position. The officer activated his red lights but the truck did not pull over. The truck continued a short distance on a side road and then into a driveway.

The officer quickly concluded that the driver of the truck was impaired and attempted to arrest the man. The man resisted the arrest and the lone officer and the man fell to the ground. While in the process of affecting the arrest, a female passenger of the truck grabbed the officer from behind and pulled him off the man. The lone officer then pepper sprayed the man and the woman. A second officer arrived at the scene and took the woman into custody.

Even though the man was pepper sprayed the two officers again had to struggle with the man to get him into custody. During the fight and all the way to the police detachment the man made continually death threats to the officer and the officer’s family.

Once in custody a search of the pick up truck revealed open liquor and an improperly stored rifle.

As a result of this investigation police have laid nine charges against the driver of the truck and two charges against the passenger.

The passenger, forty seven(47) year old Jaqueline MANZUTTI of Albert Street in Sault Ste Marie has been charged with Obstructing Police contrary to the Criminal Code of Canada and Being Drunk in a Public Place contrary to the Liquor Licence Act of Ontario. She was eventually released from custody for court at a later date.

The driver of the pick up truck now faces seven charges. He appeared in W.A.S.H court this morning and has been remanded in custody to bail court tomorrow morning.

The driver of the truck has been identified as forty eight year old Martin PERRAULT of Garden River First Nation. He faces charges of Impaired Driving, Driving While Over the Legal Limit, Resisting Arrest, Uttering Death Threats, Unlawful Possession of a Firearm, and Careless Storage of a Firearm, all contrary to the Criminal Code of Canada. Mr. Perrault is also charged with Driving With No Licence, Driving With No Insurance and Driving With Open Liquor Readily Available


ASSAULT ON SPOUSE RESULTS IN WEEKEND STAY IN JAIL

Heyden, Ont.,

An assault at a Heyden home over the weekend has resulted in one man spending the weekend in jail awaiting his appearance in Monday morning’s bail court.

On Friday night at about 10:00 p.m. police were called to a home on Cedar Court in Heyden. Officers discovered that a woman in the house had been assaulted by her spouse. The investigation is indicating that the woman was pushed to the floor. Her leg
and knee were twisted.

As a result of this investigation a fifty six(56) year old Heyden man has been charged with one count of Assault contrary to the Criminal Code of Canada. He will appear in Sault Ste Marie bail court on Monday morning. The victim of the assault did not require medical attention.

TWELVE CRASHES … SO FAR

Sault Ste Marie OPP have responded to twelve crashes in our detachment area so far this weekend. Since Friday at 12:00 noon until this morning, officers and tow trucks have been kept busy both east and north of the City limits.

A continuous blanket of snow and blowing snow in the area has resulted in hazardous driving conditions throughout the Sault Ste Marie OPP Detachment area. There are no reported injuries in any of these crashes.