Durham officers say they had to taser a man after he fled the scene of a Whitby shoplifting incident in a van, hitting several police cruisers along the way.
Just before 10:30 p.m. on Monday, police were called to the Real Canadian Superstore on Taunton Road West regarding a theft. A loss-prevention officer at the grocery store saw three men filling shopping carts with products and leaving without paying.
Officers arrived and arrested one of the suspects, but the other two ran away. One of the fleeing men was arrested nearby, but the third got into a burgundy cargo van and drove off.
Police say he ended up travelling to Oshawa, driving erratically eastbound on Rossland Road. They tried to stop the van, but it rammed the police cruisers and kept going.
At one point, the van drove over a residential driveway and struck two parked vehicles. Officers eventually managed to box in the vehicle on Rossland Road West near Hortop Street, but he continued to hit the cruises to try to break free. Police then arrested him with the help of a taser.
“Apparently, this vehicle went through several stop signs, intersections,” said Dave Selby, a spokesperson with Durham Regional Police Service. “The officers … have to protect citizens and there’s people out that late at night walking around. There are other vehicles on the road as well, so their first priority is to keep everyone safe. Sometimes, that means backing right off and letting the car go, and sometimes, that means boxing that car in and stopping it.”
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An officer suffered minor injuries during the incident.
Based on his behaviour, the 46-year-old driver from Pickering was taken to hospital for an assessment. Under the Mental Health Act, physicians have invoked their mandate to involuntarily hold him for up to three days, as he may be a risk to himself or others. He is facing numerous charges.
Police have charged the other two men involved in the incident.
Fifty-six-year-old Abbas Khaleghipour from Toronto faces several charges, including theft under $5,000 and possession of a Schedule I substance, namely, cocaine.
Andrew Friel, 43, of Toronto, is charged with theft under $5,000 and possession of stolen property under $5,000.
Anyone with new information about this investigation is asked to contact Det. Const. Graff (ext. 1831) or Det. Const. Willis (ext. 1829) of the Central West Division Criminal Investigations Bureau at 1-888-579-1520.
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