BONNYVILLE – It is not often that the public gets a front row seat to RCMP in pursuit of a suspect vehicle, but an incident that took place on a service road in the Town of Bonnyville's west end on Sunday morning caught the attention of passing motorists.
At about 8:15 a.m., on July 30, Bonnyville RCMP received a complaint of a suspicious vehicle at the Kopala building, the future site of Station 1 Bonnyville.
While officers were on route to the scene, it was reported that the suspicious vehicle had departed.
“Officers soon located the Dodge Ram 3500 pick-up and observed it driving in reverse at a speed of approximately 25-30 km/hr, eastbound on Highway 28 towards Bonnyville,” according to information provided by RCMP.
The truck reportedly lost a tire and caused sparks to fly everywhere.
Attending officers noted many civilian vehicles leaving the highway to avoid being hit by the suspect vehicle, say police. Due to the risk to highway motorists, officers made the decision to initiate a pursuit.
“Officers then noted a civilian vehicle attempt to stop the suspect vehicle, which veered onto 70th Street, a side road adjacent to Highway 28,” continued information provided by RCMP.
“Both vehicles then collided, and the suspect vehicle stopped. However, the suspect then intentionally rammed the police car, rendering it inoperable.”
Officers then conducted a high-risk arrest, leading to the suspect being taken into custody.
It was later determined that the suspect vehicle had been stolen from a business in Bonnyville at around 1 a.m. earlier that morning.
Simon Erwin Cardinal, a 30-year-old, resident of Cold Lake, faces 11 charges including assault with a weapon, operating a motor vehicle in a dangerous manner, and possession of stolen property over $5,000.
Following a Judicial Interim Release Hearing, Cardinal was remanded into custody and will be appearing at Alberta Court of Justice on Aug. 1 in Bonnyville.
RCMP are not laying charges against the civilian driver involved in the incident, Sgt. Douglas MacFarland confirmed to Lakeland This Week.
