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Vol. 15, No. 39, Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2020 www.LamontLeader.com
Eye Witnesses Bruderheim family watches truck being stolen BY JANA SEMENIUK A Bruderheim family lost their vehicle to thieves during a police chase that ended in five people being taken into custody after midnight on Aug. 9. The incident, which was reported by The Lamont Leader, began in Edmonton as a stolen vehicle case which quickly evolved into a dramatic chase, ending in Bruderheim with Fort Saskatchewan RCMP assisting the Edmonton police officers. Sarah Fleming, who has been a Bruderheim resident with her husband and child since 2009, was on her way to bed around midnight on Aug. 9 when she heard a commotion outside her home. “We heard an awful grinding and screeching sound,” she said. “So, we looked out our front window and saw a truck on fire and sparking coming around the corner.” A neighbour down the street from Fleming caught the events on a security camera outside of his home. The dramatic footage was shared on social media and photo in The Lamont Leader. Fleming observed the flaming truck come to a stop near her home where two individuals were seen exiting the vehicle. “I saw two people getting out of the truck and then saw police show up,” she said. “Then I heard breaking glass.” Fleming said the two suspects broke the window of the family’s truck in order to get inside to steal it. Her husband, who was in the garage at the time of the incident, witnessed the police attempt to subdue the suspects. “My husband saw one of the police officers pull out his gun on the two individuals who were in our truck. The
A tow truck driver arrives to remove a damaged truck that was stolen from a Bruderheim family on Aug. 9. All four tires were damaged when the truck drove over a police spike belt that was laid out in order to stop the vehicle. Both male occupants were taken into custody. police dogs were here too,” she said. The criminals then drove off in Fleming’s vehicle with police on their heels. The vehicle was eventually subdued with the use of a spike belt which successfully deflated all four tires and
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brought the vehicle to a stop. Two males were taken into custody at that point. Fleming said that in Apr. 2019 her family’s vehicle was also broken into, but the criminals only stole some work
We are going to look into some cameras for peace of mind. We have three dogs but they didn’t even bark that night. They are not good security. - Sarah Fleming
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items and not the vehicle itself at that time. Although the latest incident was not the first one to happen to her family since moving to Bruderheim 11 years ago, Fleming said she still feels safe living there. “I still feel that this town is really safe. A lot of the families here, we may not know each other well but we all look out for each other,” she said. Fleming added that this experience has prompted her family to look at adding more security to their home in the way of cameras. “We are going to look into some cameras for peace of mind. We have three dogs but they didn’t even bark that night. They are not good security,” she laughed. “It makes my anxiety run high, so we will do what we can to make our home safe.” On Aug. 8, Edmonton police took three people into custody in Josephburg after following suspected stolen vehicles east on Yellowhead Trail. Two additional people escaped the scene in one of the stolen vehicles and took police on a chase through Bruderheim. Assisted by Fort Saskatchewan RCMP, EPS Air 1 and K9 units, the vehicle was finally subdued with the help of a spike belt and the two occupants taken into custody. In all, five people were taken into custody and three were eventually released with no charges. Peter Smyth, 25, was charged with possession of stolen property over $5,000, two charges of theft of a motor vehicle, criminal flight, dangerous driving, driving while disqualified and two charges of breach of conditions. Dillion Laney, 26, was also charged with two charges of theft of a motor vehicle.
