A “movie-like chase” ended with a suspected stolen semi-truck crash landing into the Fraser River in Surrey early Thursday morning.
According to the Langley RCMP, at around 7:35 p.m. Wednesday, Langley officers from its Special Response Team saw a semi-truck in the area of 24 Avenue and 206 Street with “mis-matched license plates.”
Shortly after midnight on Thursday, officers then tried to pull the truck over with the help of the Integrated Police Dog Service.
“As police lights were activated, the driver, later confirmed to be a 40-year-old man, immediately began ramming police vehicles, successfully striking one,” Sgt. Zynal Sharoom said in a statement.
“Despite police attempts to disengage, the suspect continued his aggressive actions by pursuing and intentionally ramming police vehicles before fleeing. A tire deflation device was deployed by SRT, which successfully deflated the semi-truck’s front right tire, but the vehicle continued to flee at high speed.
“The suspect’s driving behaviour posed a significant risk to public and police safety; therefore, the Langley RCMP Frontline officers initiated a pursuit to stop the threat,” Sharoom continued.
Sharoom tells 1130 NewsRadio that the driver was acting so dangerously that police had to make the rare decision to initiate and continue the pursuit.
“We needed to make sure that the public ahead was warned that this individual was operating a semi-truck with zero regard to their safety. … The behavior that was exhibited by the driver behind the wheel of this semi truck led us to believe that we needed to stop this threat to prevent anyone from getting seriously hurt or killed,” he explained.
The truck and driver then made their way into Surrey, through multiple residential neighbourhoods, the RCMP says.
“A second spike belt, deployed by SPOSU, successfully disabled the semi-truck’s rear tires. The suspect continued to flee, driving dangerously at high speeds, disregarding red lights, and overtaking multiple vehicles,” Sharoom said.“The pursuit led northbound on 176 Street to Highway 17, and then westbound into the Bridgeview area of Surrey.”
In what police say was a final “reckless” move, the driver then drove the truck into a public dock area where several dozen people were at the time. He drove off the embankment, crash-landing into the Fraser River.
The driver then got out of the truck and tried to run away, but was eventually arrested with the help of the Lower Mainland District Integrated Emergency Response Team (LMD-IERT).
“This was an incredibly dangerous situation involving a suspect who showed zero regard for public safety or the lives of our officers,” said Sharoom. “Thanks to the skill, coordination, and professionalism of multiple policing units, this individual was safely taken into custody without injury to the public or police.”
Police say the suspect remains in custody pending further investigation.
Anyone with information about the incidents in Langley and Surrey and haven’t yet spoken to police are being urged to contact the Langley RCMP and reference file number 2025-14838.
source: CityNews photo: 1st Due Media
