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Thursday, October 6, 2005

LAST NIGHTS TRUCK THIEF IDENTIFIED Batchawana, Ont.,Sault Ste Marie OPP have identified the accused man in last nights pick up truck theft and tractor trailer ride that resulted in a police dog tracking the suspect down.
SooToday Staff
LAST NIGHTS TRUCK THIEF IDENTIFIED

Batchawana, Ont.,Sault Ste Marie OPP have identified the accused man in last nights pick up truck theft and tractor trailer ride that resulted in a police dog tracking the suspect down.

Twenty two (22) year old Mario Inookie VINE, of Sault Ste Marie, is appearing in Sault Ste Marie bail court this morning facing a variety of Criminal and Highway Traffic Act charges.


OPP JOINS CANADA’S POLICE SERVICES FOR
OPERATION IMPACT

Orillia, ON – This Thanksgiving Day Weekend, the Ontario Provincial Police will join police services from across Canada for Operation IMPACT. Promoted by the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police, this will mark the fifteenth year for this National program which raises public awareness regarding issues of public safety on our roadways.

The program will run between noon local time on Friday, October 7th through until midnight local time, Monday, October 10th.

Operation IMPACT supports Canada’s Road Safety Vision 2010, which is a plan to make Canada’s roads the safest in the world by 2010. This year, police will focus on impaired driving, use of occupant restraints and intersection related offences. O.P.P. members from Kenora to Lancaster, and from Leamington to Moosenee, and everywhere in between, will be highly visible, looking for motorists who continue to practice high risk driving habits. There will be no tolerance for violators.

Last year, nearly 3,000 people dies in traffic collisions on Canadian roads. In addition, 220,000 persons were injured, 18,000 of those critically.

Tragically, members of the Ontario Provincial Police have investigated 279 fatal collisions so far in 2005, resulting in the deaths of 314 persons. At this point, impairment by alcohol is confirmed as a factor in 9% of these collisions, with several other now-deceased motorists suspected of driving impaired, subject to final toxicology reports. Excessive speed was identified as a causation in 28% of the crashes. Most shockingly, investigators report that failing to wear a seatbelt has directly contributed to 33% of the fatalities so far this year investigated by the O.P.P.. In the vast majority of these cases, drivers and passengers could have walked away from their crash virtually unscathed had they buckled themselves in and stayed in their seats during the collision. There is no excuse for failing to fasten your seat belt, given that it is no more difficult or time consuming than opening your car door.

Almost all of these collisions are predictable and therefore, preventable. Please help save those very lives for which we are thankful. Drive responsibly and have a safe Thanksgiving Day weekend.


Police Dog Used To Track Thief

Batchawana, Ont., The Sault Ste Marie OPP sought the assistance of the Sault Ste Marie Police Service Canine Unit last night to track down thief on the run.

Last night at about 9:15 p.m. a male pulled into a Goulais River gas station and got $70.00 worth of gas and headed north without paying for the gas. The attendant got the licence plate off the pick up truck and a description of the driver and passed the information onto the OPP. A computer check indicated that the truck had just been stolen from the City of Sault Ste Marie.

A short time later the pick up was reported in the ditch just north of the village of Batchawana. A truck driver who stopped at the scene indicated that the operator of the pick up was attempting to hide from the truck driver. The truck driver got back into his rig and stopped at a business in Batchawana. As the driver got out of his truck the same suspect walked around the truck and asked him for a ride. It is believed that the suspect hung onto the outside of the transport as the rig down the highway to report this incident.

When the suspect realized that the truck driver was calling the police, he fled the area. Residents and business owners in the area called police with several reports of the suspect either around their businesses or near their homes.

The OPP requested the assistance of the City of Sault Ste Marie Police Service’s Canine Unit. At about 12:00 midnight the police dog tracked the suspect down and he was taken into custody. Upon arrest police found a small quantity of marijuana in his possession.

A 23 year old Sault Ste Marie man will appear in bail court this morning facing numerous charges. He will be charged with Theft over and under $5000.00, Possession of Stolen Property over $5000.00, Fail to Remain at the Scene of an Accident, Drug Possession, and several other Highway Traffic Act charges.

His name cannot be released until court papers have been filed later this morning.