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RCMP: More tire slashings reported

Police still investigating after mayor and CAO's tires slashed

On June 24 the Whistler RCMP received a report from a local business that several tires had been slashed. The damage occurred between June 17 and June 20, which overlaps with a report from last week where tires on vehicles belonging to Mayor Ken Melamed, Municipal Administrator Bill Barratt, Barratt's wife and one of Barratt's neighbours were slashed late Sunday, June 19 or early morning on June 20.

The RCMP would not identify the company, but said the additional reports were from Legacy Way in Cheakamus Crossing. The extent of the damage includes three tires on a dump truck, two tires on a transfer trailer behind a different dump truck, one tire on a paving truck belonging to an excavation company and four tires on a pickup truck.

The RCMP is investigating all cases, and whether they might be related. Over 20 tires were slashed in the reported cases.

The police would not speculate on a motive, but both the mayor and administrator have come under fire regarding the handling of the asphalt plant in Cheakamus Crossing, which is still operating despite a cease and desist order for producing asphalt on the site.

 

Vehicle recovered, but important keys still missing

At noon on June 21 the RCMP received a report of a stolen vehicle in the Stonebridge area. Some broken glass was found at the scene, and it's believed the suspect used a spare key in the vehicle to drive away.

The RCMP investigated and searched Alta Lake Road and the day skier lots, but the vehicle wasn't located until June 23 on Alta Lake Road. But while the vehicle was recovered, a ring of keys had gone missing. The vehicle belonged to a cleaner, and the keys were for her clients' homes. She has since alerted her customers, 11 residences and one business, regarding the missing keys.

The police are still investigating and the vehicle was examined for fingerprints and other forensic evidence.

 

Bike thefts continue; writing down serial numbers recommended

At 5:30 a.m. on June 22, a residence in Rainbow contacted the RCMP to let it know that four bikes - three Konas and a Devinci valued at $10,000 - had been stolen from their garage overnight.

It's believed that the thief entered the unlocked vehicle in the driveway and used the remote garage door opener to gain entry to the garage and home. The owners woke up when they realized that the lights were on, but when they investigated the bikes were already gone. They don't know what time the bikes were taken.

The four stolen bikes bring the number of reports this year to 32. However, only two of the bike owners had the serial numbers to their bicycles.

"If a bike gets stolen and if it's recovered a bike can be positively identified with the number," explained Staff Sergeant Steve LeClair of the Whistler RCMP. "Otherwise we're left trying to identify bikes from markings."

To find the serial number, you typically need to turn the bike upside down. It's usually stamped onto the bottom bracket and is a combination of letters and numbers. It an also be found on the top of the bracket, on the seat tube, on the front of the headset and on the rear stays that connect to the rear wheel.

On a positive note, the police are starting to recover bikes that are being found and turned if. If you have had a bike stolen this year you can contact the RCMP at 604-932-3044.

 

Girl approached by male in Pemberton

At 3 p.m. on June 27, the Pemberton RCMP received a report about a four-year-old girl who was approached by a male and asked to go with him.

The incident took place the day before on June 26 at 12:35 p.m. The girl fled into the store on Frontier Street where her father was, but didn't mention the incident until that night.

She described the male as wearing a light blue shirt, black sunglasses and grey and black shorts. He was pale skinned.

If you saw anyone matching that description that day, contact the Pemberton RCMP at 604-894-6634.

Parents should never leave young children unattended and should tell them never to talk to people they don't know or go anywhere with a stranger.

 

Another fraud victim comes forward

The RCMP are warning members of the public to avoid any scams that involve cashing cheques and sending a portion of that money to another address after several recent cases of residents being caught. In one case reported two weeks ago a local man was taken for $3,500.

This past week the RCMP received a complaint where a person was hired to process transactions for a company in Toronto. They sent a cheque for $300 and the person sent most of that money to an address in the Philippines while keeping a portion as wages. The initial cheque never cleared.

There are many variations of the scam, including fraudsters overpaying by cheque for goods or services, such as a house rental, and then asking a person to wire the overpayment back before the cheque has a chance to clear. Scammers contact people by email and using online classified websites.

 

Man arrested for breaching conditions

A 33-year-old Whistler male was arrested on June 22 at 7:35 p.m. after the police received a complaint that he grabbed a female on the Village Stroll outside of a nightclub. The RCMP attended, and found that the female had pushed the male away and the male had left the scene.

That might have been the end of the story, but the male was known to the female and had been being convicted for an assault on her that occurred in January 2010. He was under conditions to have no contact with the female while intoxicated, not to attend her place of work while intoxicated and to leave her presence when asked. The conditions would have been up after July 16, one year after he was sentenced.

He was held in jail for breach of his conditions until he could appear in court.

 

Village drinkers arrested for breaches

Three drinkers known previously to the Whistler RCMP were arrested last week for breaching various undertakings related to consuming alcohol.

On June 24 at 10:50 a.m. the police received a call that an intoxicated male was asleep on some benches near the pond on Main Street, with an open two-litre bottle of alcohol and a bag full of empty beer cans. When the police approached the man kicked the cans into the water and nearly fell in himself. The male, a 47-year-old from Mount Currie, was charged with breach after being given a suspended sentence with the condition not to be intoxicated in public. He was remanded into custody until he could appear in court on June 27.

On June 26 at 1:04 p.m. the RCMP received a complaint that a male was uttering threats outside a village liquor store. When the police attended they found the male, a 52-year-old from Pemberton was taken into custody.

Just half an hour later the police noted another man stumbling down Village Gate towards the highway. He exhibited other signs of being intoxicated, and when he reached into his jacket to get a cigarette the police saw that he was in possession of a bottle of vodka. The 50-year-old male of no fixed address was also known to police and under conditions not to consume alcohol.

 

Man arrested for selling steroids

At 10:15 p.m. on June 24 RCMP officers observed one male hand money to another outside a village liquor store. The police arrested the male who received money and searched his backpack where they discovered a bottle of what appeared to be steroids. The pills were sent for analysis, and the 22-year-old male from Coquitlam is facing charges of possession of steroids and trafficking.