Suspicious vehicle tip leads to arrest with guns, drugs near Strathmore, Alta.

RCMP are crediting an observant resident for the seizure of drugs and firearms during an arrest of a man east of Strathmore, Alta.

At around 2:30 p.m. on Dec. 29, 2022, Strathmore RCMP received a complaint about a suspicious vehicle parked off a rural roadway on Township Road 244 east of Highway 21. The vehicle was suspected of being there for “several hours.”

When officers approached the vehicle, it appeared to be unoccupied but a male occupant was found to be sleeping in the driver seat.

RCMP said a scale and baggie with a white substance was also visible from outside the vehicle.

Police arrested the man, removing him from the vehicle.

While removing him, officers noticed a .22 calibre handgun on the driver’s side floor. A more thorough search of the vehicle revealed a loaded 9mm handgun in a satchel on the passenger seat.

Officers also seized two bags with a substance believed to be cocaine, a bag of light blue pills believed to be fentanyl and an amount of what was believed to be a cutting agent.

The male was taken to the Strathmore RCMP detachment and, during a sobriety assessment, was thought to be impaired by cannabis.

At a bail hearing, Oussama Moumi, 22, of Wheatland County was charged with 17 firearms- and drug-related offences. One of those charges was possession of property obtained by crime under $5,000, related to the .22 calibre handgun confirmed stolen in a 2013 break and enter near Cochrane, Alta.

Moumi was remanded and issued a roadside sanction for being impaired. He remains in custody.

“I’d like to thank the resident who reported what in their observation was suspicious activity,” RCMP Staff Sgt. Mark Wielgos said in a statement. “In this case, a simple report led to an arrest, seizure of firearms one of which was linked to a theft in Cochrane and seizure of dangerous substances capable of untold harm.

“Reporting suspicious activity is of great assistance in keeping our communities safe which was evidenced in this investigation.”