A police service dog helped solve a crime on Monday, after a suspected car thief tried to evade police at high speed.
At about 9:40 p.m. Monday, patrol officers spotted a Ford Mustang that was reported stolen earlier that evening. They watched the car turn from 5 Street East onto River Street and then switched on their lights and sirens.
The suspect ignored them, and took off at high speed. Officers called off the chase.
“As soon as they enter high speeds we immediately call it off. We don’t do high-speed pursuits anymore,” said police media liaison Alanna Adamko. “Our primary concern is for the public’s safety.”
But police didn’t give up. They launched a search of the surrounding area and, in less than an hour, located the Mustang parked in a back alley by the 1400 Block of 1 Street East. Officers spotted a woman nearby, who they believed was involved in the car theft and chase.
They arrested her, but needed more proof to back up their suspicions. So they brought in Police Service Dog Feebee.
Feebee tracked the scent of the suspect from the stolen vehicle back to the police car she was sitting in, essentially proving that she’d been in the Mustang shortly before.
The woman, a 31 year old from Prince Albert, was charged with possession of stolen property exceeding $5,000, operating a motor vehicle while being pursued by a peace officer and attempting to evade a peace officer, and two breaches of court orders. She was due in Prince Albert provincial court Tuesday.
