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Vancouver teen with long rap sheet arrested for stealing, crashing van in Whistler

Police Briefs: Bust nets 62g of pot; several cocaine arrests made
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An 18-year-old man with an extensive criminal history faces numerous charges after he crashed a vehicle that was allegedly stolen from in front of a Whistler home.

Early Sunday morning, April 19, police received word of an accident outside a house on St. Andrew's Way.

Upon attending, officers spoke with a witness who claimed to have seen a man run from the crashed van into another vehicle before speeding off.

Another witness followed the suspect to a Staff Housing complex on Glacier Lane, with police quickly following suit.

The suspect was eventually located and arrested for failing to remain at the scene of an accident, possession of stolen property and auto theft, after it was determined the van was stolen.

After reviewing security footage, the Vancouver man was also slapped with a break and enter charge as the tape showed the suspect entering the home where the vehicle was stolen from and leaving with a black backpack.

The suspect was held for court.

Tossed joint leads to pot bust

It just goes to show that, at least in a small town, there's always bound to be a police officer nearby.

Two women learned this lesson the hard way on Saturday, April 18, when an officer observed the driver of a vehicle in front of him toss what he initially thought was a lit cigarette out the window.

After smelling burnt marijuana in the air, the off-duty cop called an officer on shift to advise him to intercept the vehicle, which was travelling northbound on Highway 99.

Police eventually pulled the women over at Blackcomb Way and Sundial Crescent, where an approaching officer detected the odor of marijuana coming from the vehicle.

Upon searching the car, RCMP found 62 grams of marijuana separated into five bags, along with an assortment of drug paraphernalia.

Both suspects, a 28- and 29-year-old from Surrey, were arrested on drug charges. The driver also had her license suspended for driving while impaired.

Slew of cocaine arrests in past week

Drug arrests are a fairly common occurrence in a party town like Whistler, and the final week of World Ski and Snowboard Festival was no exception.

Police cuffed five individuals for cocaine possession in a four-day period last week, beginning on Wednesday, April 15, when a man was observed snorting a white powder off his hand near a village nightclub.

The man, who was in a group of four, initially denied being in possession of a controlled substance despite having "cocaine residue on the tip of his nose, in his left nostril, on his moustache, and even a little on his T-shirt," said Whistler RCMP Staff Sgt. Steve LeClair.

Officers seized two bags of suspected cocaine totalling almost a gram.

The other three men in the suspect's party were also arrested, but were eventually released without charge.

The suspect is a 28-year-old Whistler man originally from Ontario.

Just after midnight the following day, officers were patrolling the village when they observed two males sitting on a wall in front of a local nightclub acting suspiciously.

When the suspect, a 21-year-old Whistler man, noticed police, he quickly turned away and attempted to conceal an item in his hand. Police suspected he was in possession of a controlled substance and searched the suspect, at which point he "pulled away violently" and subsequently tried to kick an officer, LeClair said. He suffered a minor cut to his chin during the arrest and was taken to the local clinic for treatment.

A further search at the detachment uncovered a baggie of suspected cocaine.

Later that day, a plainclothes officer observed a man cutting up a line of white powder on his cell phone in a wooded area behind a village nightclub.

The 25-year-old Whistler man, by way of Ireland, was arrested on possession charges after a half-gram of suspected cocaine was found on him.

On Saturday, April 18, a plainclothes officer in the village observed a male and female snorting suspected cocaine in front of a clothing store.

Both suspects were cooperative during the arrest, LeClair said, with the male informing officers he had MDMA in his pants pocket. A search also turned up a bag of white powder in the female's purse.

Both suspects, a 25-year-old Pitt Meadows woman and a 24-year-old Maple Ridge man, were released with a promise to appear in court.

Man arrested on numerous charges after mother reports him to police

Even motherly love has its limits.

That's what a 31-year-old Whistler man discovered after his mother called police to report that he had entered her home after "repeatedly being told he was not welcome," LeClair said.

The woman was particularly concerned because her son had a history of stealing from her in the past. Most recently she said he used her and her husband's credit cards without her permission to pay off debts.

The man, who is of no fixed address, was arrested on numerous charges, including break and enter and theft, police said.