Last Tuesday afternoon Maidstone RCMP received a report of a car driving erratically on Highway #16, west of Maidstone and while they located the car on the Yellowhead and attempted a traffic stop, the vehicle fled. Police say the driver was entering and exiting the ditch at highway speeds.
The car was located a short time later, disabled, on a grid road. The driver fled into nearby trees but was quickly located and RCMP say he resisted arrest.
The vehicle was determined to be stolen out of Ontario and the driver was charged, appeared in court and was released pending his next court appearance however the very next morning Saskatchewan RCMP saw a man breaking into a vehicle in Maidstone and identified him as the same offender from the day before.
As officers were searching for the suspect who had fled on foot, a short time later RCMP saw a person matching the suspect description driving an SUV. In a news release RCMP allege he had gone into a nearby home, stolen the keys to an SUV and then stole the vehicle. Again, officers attempted a traffic stop but the vehicle fled heading west on Highway #16.
A tire deflation device was deployed partially deflating the tires, but the suspect continued to drive into the town of Marshall where police say the SUV became disabled and while in motion the suspect jumped out and fled on foot.
The unmanned SUV then hit an unoccupied parked car. Meanwhile the suspect was tracked down to yet another stolen vehicle, this time a truck in a parking lot in Marshall. RCMP blocked the parking lot exit, but the truck reversed hitting the police vehicle repeatedly and then ran into a second police vehicle before fleeing. No officers were injured but one of the police vehicles was disabled; the second was damaged.
The stolen truck drove down a dead-end road and into a field where it became stuck. Officers followed the suspect fleeing on foot into a treed area and say they deployed a conducted energy weapon when he resisted arrest. He was taking into custody and between the various incidents 25-year-old Manjinder Singh from Brampton, Ontario is facing 15 counts, was remanded in custody this time, and will be in Lloydminster Provincial Court on Thursday.
Manjinder Singh is charged with:
- three counts, resists/obstruct peace officer, Section 129(a), Criminal Code;
- two counts, flight from peace officer, Section 320.17, Criminal Code;
- one count, dangerous operation of a motor vehicle, Section 320.13(1), Criminal Code;
- one count, possession of property obtained by crime over $5000, Section 354(1)(a), Criminal Code;
- one count, failure to stop after collision with another conveyance, Section 320.16(1), Criminal Code;
- two counts, theft of vehicle, Section 333.1(1), Criminal Code;
- one count, breaking, entering, committing – residence, Section 348(1)(b), Criminal Code;
- two counts, mischief under $5000 – damage to motor vehicle, Section 430(4), Criminal Code;
- one count, mischief over $5000 – damage to motor vehicle, Section 430(3), Criminal Code; and
- one count, fail to comply with release order condition, Section 145(5)(a), Criminal Code.
