On Feb. 3, 2020 at approximately 1 p.m. St. Paul RCMP responded to a report that a person had a firearm pointed at them in St. Paul near 48 Street and 50 Avenue while two suspects were sitting in a stolen vehicle.
The vehicle had previously been reported stolen from Saddle Lake, and the victim was attempting to recover it when one of the suspects inside pointed a firearm in the victim's direction before driving away. No shots were fired, and the victim was not injured.
St. Paul RCMP with the assistance of the Eastern Alberta District Rural Crime Reduction Unit and General Investigative Section conducted patrols in the area. The stolen vehicle was located abandoned on a residential street containing the firearm. The two suspects were arrested a short distance from the vehicle without incident. Police do not believe this was a random incident.
A 27-year-old male of Saddle Lake was charged with:
- Pointing a firearm
- Fail to comply with a release order
- Possession of property obtained by crime less than $5000
- Possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose
- Possession of a prohibited weapon
- Possession of a firearm in a motor vehicle
He was remanded into custody after a judicial hearing and will be appearing in St. Paul provincial court on Feb. 6, 2020.
A 27-year-old female who cannot be identified pending a swearing of an Information was charged with theft of a motor vehicle and released.
"Our members reacted quickly to this situation to ensure the public was not at risk," says Sergeant David Graham, St. Paul RCMP. "Public safety is our number one concern and we believe through our investigation this was not a random incident."