Kamloops RCMP say they have arrested a woman believed to have crashed a stolen vehicle into a number of cars in a parking lot in a daring escape from police Friday afternoon.
The dramatic incident was caught on video and posted to social media, showing what RCMP said were plainclothes police officers attempting to stop a white SUV outside a Mr. Lube.
The SUV — which is already badly damaged with its front bumper barely hanging on — plows into a number of vehicles before finding an escape route and speeding towards the street, while the officers look on with their guns drawn.
RCMP said the officers came across the vehicle, which had been previously reported stolen from Surrey, in the lot near the 200-block of Tranquille Road around 12:30 p.m.
The chaos began when the officers attempted to arrest the female driver, who jumped into the vehicle and caused “significant damage” to the other parked cars.
The driver then made her way through Kamloops, prompting a number of bystanders to report the damaged vehicle to RCMP.
Police finally caught up with the stolen vehicle, which was abandoned in the parking lot of a Canadian Tire at 1441 Hillside Drive.
The female departed on foot and could not be located, police said.
She was arrested in Chilliwack Friday evening, and is expected to appear before the courts on Saturday.
Court records show Kersten Peters is facing charges of dangerous operation of a vehicle, assaulting a police officer with a weapon, willfully resisting or obstructing a peace officer, and possession of stolen property.
“We can never predict how these criminals will react, and we are very thankful that no one from the public was hurt today,” Staff Sgt. Mat Van Laer said in a statement.
The dramatic incident marked the second case in two hours involving a stolen vehicle in Kamloops.
A man and woman, both in their 30s, were arrested just after 11 a.m. Friday after police pulled them over in a pickup truck reported stolen on Wednesday night.
Police were alerted to that situation after a caller claimed to be following the stolen vehicle and requested a police response.
“This really underscores the danger that these events represent,” Van Laer said.