Truck recovered, woman arrested with help from Kelowna police dog, air services

A female suspect involved in a truck theft is in police custody thanks to the vehicle's satellite radio company.

On Thursday morning, shortly before 8 am, the owner of a red 2021 Dodge Ram pickup truck left their vehicle running white they ran inside to grab their wallet.

During that time, their truck was stolen from their house in the 2800-block of Doucette Dr., which is in the Smith Creek area of West Kelowna, the RCMP said in a news release.

Around 9:15 am, the satellite radio company for the vehicle was able to locate the GPS coordinates for the truck, which was parked at a location in East Kelowna.

The Kelowna RCMP’s Proactive Enforcement Unit and Police Dog Services with help from the RCMP aIr Services attended the area and attempted a traffic stop, the release said.

However, the female driver allegedly fled from the police.

While doing that, she reportedly damaged a police vehicle before leaving the area at a high rate of speed, the RCMP said.

A pursuit was not initiated, however.

About 45 minutes later, the vehicle was stopped in the area of Pacific Avenue and Gordon Drive in the Capri neighbourhood.

The police said the woman tried to flee on foot but was arrested shortly after.

She is still in police custody and is due in front of a judge for several offences including possession of stolen property and flight from police.

“It’s unclear if this particular vehicle was being targeted or if this was strictly an opportunistic theft, however it serves as a reminder to be very mindful if you are going to be leaving your vehicle running even if only momentarily,” said Cpl. Michael Gauthier.

“Thankfully this owner reported the incident to police immediately and the vehicle was equipped with the technology to locate it.”

^{Thumbnail photo credit: KelownaNow}