File: 20-25285
Victoria, BC – Investigators are asking for anyone with cellphone, surveillance or dashcam video of a vehicle theft incident which saw the rightful owner trapped in the back of his own pick-up truck as the thief attempted to flee.
Patrol officers were called to the 900-block of Green Street just before 8 a.m. on Thursday, June 25th, for a report that a man’s truck had been stolen. The victim reported that he was on his way to work in his vehicle when he discovered he had forgotten an item. He returned to his residence in the 900-block of Green Street and entered his home, leaving his truck running. He then heard the sound of his truck being backed out of his driveway and exited his residence to discover a man driving his truck away. The victim then spotted two VicPD volunteer Reserve Constables who were on foot patrol in the area and sought their assistance. The Reserves called in the stolen truck, along with a description of the suspect. Patrol officers arrived and took the victim’s report.
While officers searched for the vehicle and suspect, the victim and his partner decided to also search the nearby area for his truck. The victim and his partner spotted the truck stopped in the 800-block of Mason Street a short time later. The victim approach the truck and spoke with a man who was outside of his vehicle, sorting through the work tools normally contained within. Spotting another man in possession of some of his property, the victim stepped away from the man standing next to the truck and approached this second man. While the victim was speaking with the second man, the first man re-entered the truck and began to drive away. The victim raced back to his truck and attempted to grab on to it, and was dragged for several blocks until he was able to pull himself into the truck bed. His partner followed behind in her vehicle.
The suspect began to drive the truck erratically, potentially in an effort to dislodge the victim from the truck bed. The victim called out to passersby for help, while his partner followed behind. Several people called 911 as the vehicle was driven through downtown, at one point reportedly down a sidewalk and at another point against traffic on Bay Street.
The suspect then fled from the vehicle at the intersection of Bay and Blanshard streets. The victim was able to climb from the bed into the cab of the vehicle and bring it to a stop. He then chased down the suspect, who was held with the assistance of passersby, until officers arrived and took the suspect into custody.
Luckily, no one was injured.
This file remains under investigation.
If you have video of any of these incidents, or have information about the incidents but have not yet spoken with officers, you are asked to call our non-emergency line at (250) 995-7654 and select option 1 for the report desk.
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