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Red Deer RCMP seize shotguns, counterfeit currency linked to stolen vehicle

Suspects also charged with firearms and stolen vehicle offences
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SEIZED - RCMP have seized three shotguns and hundreds of dollars worth of counterfeit Canadian currency after locating a stolen vehicle. photo submitted

Red Deer RCMP seized three shotguns and hundreds of dollars worth of counterfeit Canadian currency after locating a stolen vehicle earlier this month that had fled police on several occasions and been involved in a number of criminal files.

Shortly before 6:30 p.m. on Oct. 19th, RCMP located a stolen white Honda Civic at an apartment in the Johnstone Crossing neighbourhood. RCMP arrested the driver in the vehicle after he attempted briefly to evade police and collided with a parked, unoccupied vehicle. The driver then surrendered to police. Meanwhile, more police officers pursued a man and a woman into the apartment building after they were seen fleeing the suspect vehicle on foot. RCMP did not locate the two passengers but seized a shotgun that had been abandoned in the stairwell.

RCMP seized two more shotguns from the recovered Civic, one of which was loaded, and numerous rounds of ammunition. Police also seized 37 counterfeit Canadian $100 bills and 12 counterfeit Canadian $20 bills from the stolen car. The counterfeit currency looks like Canadian polymer bills but is printed on paper and each bill has Chinese characters printed on it. Similar bills have been seized by numerous police departments across Canada in recent months but this is the first seizure of counterfeits with the Chinese characters in Red Deer. In this seizure, the 20s have pink characters and the 100s have white characters.

A 25-year-old Red Deer man will face a number of criminal charges including weapons charges, flight from police and possession of stolen property. His name and a complete list of charges will be released once those charges have been sworn before the courts.

The Honda Civic had been reported stolen out of Red Deer on Sept. 24th. After its theft, the car was involved in numerous criminal offences in Central Alberta: four gas and dash incidents in which the driver was a woman; two separate incidents in which police located the stolen vehicle but it fled at high speeds and police didn’t pursue for public safety reasons; a shoplifting incident in which a man and woman fled a store with approximately $500 worth of items and drove away in the suspect car; and a public report of dangerous driving in which the car was occupied by two men.

Police continue to investigate. Anyone with information about any of these incidents is asked to call Red Deer RCMP at 403-343-5575. Those wishing to remain anonymous can call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or report it online at www.tipsubmit.com.

- Connolly