PATROL DIVISION

Cheque Fraud Leads to Arrest

In February, police responded to a complaint from a sixty-one-year-old woman who had been defrauded by a male whom she met at a lower mainland casino and then befriended.

Over a period of several weeks the suspect and the victim met numerous times and he eventually told her that he had lost family in the Haitian Earthquake and needed money to travel there to help them. The suspect claimed that he unfortunately did not have a bank-account, and he was then able to convince the victim to cash several of his paycheques.

The victim cashed the cheques and gave the suspect the proceeds, however, when the cheques were forwarded to the payors' bank they were found to be fraudulent. By this time the suspect had broken contact with the victim and the file was concluded.

On May 8th, the victim called the police again to report that the suspect had contacted her and asked that she cash more cheques for him. The victim agreed, and she arranged a meeting and called the police.

The accused was later arrested and charged with Uttering a Forged Document.

Assist Port Mann Freeway

In the middle of the afternoon the Port Mann Freeway Patrol requested the assistance of a Drug Recognition Expert (DRE) as they were dealing with a drug impaired driver. This driver was followed from 264th and the feeway to the Brunette exit, he was swerving all over the road, driving slow and almost struck a concrete wall. S/Sgt Milne conducted drug evaluation and determined the 31 year old male driver was impaired by a combination of a Narcotic (methadone), a CNS Depressant (Valium) and a CNS Stimulant. The driver admitted to taking the drugs while driving and that he was trying to kick a percocet addiction. A search of his vehicle by the RCMP located several kilos of ecstacy with a value of $181,000.00.
 

Assist CBSA – U.S. Arrest Warrant for Murder

The Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA) requested NWPS assistance with arresting a male refugee claimant under the Immigration Act. CBSA had determined the male had a warrant for his arrest out of Las Vegas, Nevada for Murder involving a firearm. Due to the increased risk of the arrest, on duty Municipal Integrated Emergency Response Team (MIERT) Tac resources were contacted to assist with the arrest at a residence in the 800 block of Chilliwack Street. The male was later arrested without incident by Patrol Division members, Operational Support Unit members, and MIERT.

Robbery

At approximately 11 p.m.a sixty-year-old woman was walking in the 800 block of 5th Street. The woman was talking on her cellphone as she walked when she observed a shadow of a person approaching her from behind.

The woman was suddenly knocked to the ground by a person she believes was a male in a dark hoodie. As the victim was falling to the ground, the suspect grabbed her phone. At the same time, the suspect dropped what the victim thought was a stick of some kind. The suspect attempted to grab the stick back, however, was apparently scared off as the victim began screaming.

Members attended and located the "stick" which turned out to be an aluminum baseball bat. An extensive search was conducted, including by Police Service Dog, however, the suspect was not located. Fortunately, the victim was not severely injured,

There have not been other similar incidents.
 

Utter Threats (NWPS File: 2010-8837)

On May 19, 2010, NWPS responded to a complaint of threats at NWSS. The suspect in this case had communicated with a friend of over Facebook the evening prior, making reference to wanting to kill students. A list of students was given to the friend, who in turn reported the incident to the school staff the next morning. The school liaison officer was notified and police responded with a significant amount of resources in their attempts at locating the suspect prior to his arrival to school. The suspect was eventually located at the school and arrested. The Major Crime Unit took over the investigation and after spending a weekend in-custody, the suspect in this case was charged and released on several conditions prohibiting him from having contact with the numerous victims listed off on Facebook. The investigation continues.
 

In-custody death investigation/assist Penticton RCMP (NWPS File: 2010–9446)

On May 28, 2010, the New Westminster Police Major Crime Unit was assigned to investigate an in custody death in Penticton, BC. BC Ambulance and the RCMP responded to a complaint of a male lying on the sidewalk in the 400 block of Martin Street, Penticton. During their interaction with the male he became unconscious and later died in hospital. The incident occurred at 13:00 hours in the center of town and as such, several witnesses had observed what had occurred. Four New Westminster Police investigators spent three days conducting interviews along with completing other investigative tasks. The investigation continues.

UPDATE

2009-10117 (Found human remains)

Major Crime Detectives have been working on this investigation for the past few months, liaising with the Coroner in his attempts to identify the deceased and carry out the NOK. Detective Ward located a missing file out of Coquitlam and was able to match our deceased to this investigation through dental records.