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Over $50,000 of materials stolen from Whistler construction site

RCMP news: Fraud suspect strikes again, and traffic stop suspect flees police
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Roofing materials valued between $50,000 and $80,000 were reported stolen from a construction site on Stonebridge Place last Tuesday, Dec. 10, according to the Whistler RCMP.

The roofing metal was stored behind a locked gate and were left untouched between Nov. 29 and Dec. 7. The gate was eventually found open with the lock missing, with three rolls of zinc-coated copper roofing material gone.

Each roll is grey in colour and weighs an estimated 3,300 pounds, according to Whistler RCMP Staff. Sgt. Steve LeClair, who said it's possible the theft was a multi-person job. He also noted that machinery could have been used to pull off the theft, or that each roll could have been unspooled, cut and removed piece by piece.

The following morning, police received a supplementary report of some additional metals stolen from the same construction site. In this case, LeClair said, a half coil of zinc oxide-covered copper roofing material was stolen, valued at an estimated $5,000.

Additional industrial materials were reported stolen in Pemberton last Thursday, Dec. 12 from a rock-crushing machine parked on Farm Road East, police said.

A complainant reported that a large amount of copper cable, last observed on Dec. 1, had been cut from the machine. Officers attended and observed that a length of copper cable leading from a generator to a rock-crushing plant had been severed.

The estimated value of the materials is between $5,000 and $10,000, RCMP said.

Notorious fraud suspect 'Adam Savage' strikes again

A woman is reportedly out nearly $2,000 after an alleged rental fraud scam thought to be carried out by a suspect familiar to Whistler RCMP.

A complainant told police she sent a $1,970 money order from England to herself, with instructions to Western Union to hold the payment until she arrived in Whistler.

Upon arriving in the resort, she attempted to retrieve the money order but discovered that it appeared to have already been released from a Western Union location in Toronto.

The money was sent to an individual under the name 'Adam Savage,' who police believe had a woman pose as the complainant in order to retrieve the funds.

"This is a well-known alias of a suspect involved in multiple Craigslist rental frauds in the Whistler area," LeClair said.

The investigation is ongoing.

Suspect flees vehicle, allegedly assaults police

Police conducting a routine traffic stop in the subdivision of Bayshore early Sunday, Dec. 15 eventually found themselves in a footrace attempting to apprehend the suspect.

Officers stopped a vehicle, suspecting the driver was impaired. After an officer read an approved screening device demand, the suspect fled on foot before being apprehended. After a brief struggle, however, the suspect managed to escape into a nearby wooded area. Police were unable to locate the man despite search efforts by the detachment and a police dog, LeClair said.

Around noon, the suspect turned himself into police.

The 22-year-old Squamish man faces charges of assault, obstructing police, and was issued a 90-day immediate roadside prohibition and a 30-day vehicle impoundment.