A 35-year-old man is in police custody after stealing a City of Edmonton Ford F-350 pickup truck Tuesday night.
Police say a witness reported a man breaking into a fenced compound at 105th Street and Fort Hill NW at around 7:45 p.m. and stole a Ford F-350 truck.
The suspect was later spotted driving erratically downtown Tuesday night, including on Jasper Avenue. He reportedly hit barricades, a parked car and a road sign, police said in a news release. Police say no one was injured.
An officer near 105th Street and Jasper Avenue spotted the vehicle weaving through traffic and started following it.
Katherine Archibald was in her vehicle on Jasper Avenue when she saw the truck heading towards her.
She said she was turning left onto 97th Street from Jasper Avenue at around 8:30 p.m. when she saw a pickup truck with City of Edmonton written on the side of it heading southbound on 97th Street.
“He took a left turn so hard he basically was on two wheels. The trunk whipped out and hit a pylon and sent the pylon flying. I was just really stunned,” she said. “My first thought was ‘What happened to make a city truck drive like that?’ “
After seeing the truck pass her, she drove northbound on 97th Street and stopped at a red light at the 103A Avenue intersection.
The city truck returned, this time heading westbound on 103A Avenue, she said.
Within a matter of seconds, Archibald said police vehicles swarmed the truck as the driver tried to turn right onto 97th Street. One police vehicle hit the truck and it went onto the sidewalk, said Archibald.
“It literally looked like something out of a movie. I was just speechless. I didn’t know what to think,” she said.
One driver reports seeing the City of Edmonton pickup truck speeding, heading southbound on 97th Street. (CBC/Sheena Roisster)
Officers, along with tactical and canine units, intercepted the truck and driver just west of Edmonton Police headquarters at approximately 8:10 p.m.
Police arrested the 35-year-old man, who they said in a release appeared to be high on drugs.
The man is facing several charges, including break and enter, theft over $5,000, possession of stolen property over $5,000, dangerous driving, criminal flight from police, criminal hit and run, driving while suspended, mischief and several breaches of conditions.