Alberta man connected to ‘shelter in place’ warning arrested in Kelowna

An Alberta man with a long criminal record was arrested in Kelowna last week, just days after a high-profile incident in his home province.

Mounties first spotted a black Ford F150 pulling a travel trailer alleged to have been stolen from a Kelowna area home Sept. 15.

“Several officers conducted surveillance on the pickup truck pulling the trailer which eventually stopped at a West Kelowna commercial location,” RCMP said in a press release.

The driver who was the lone occupant was taken into custody without incident and identified as Gregory Deviat, 35, of Cochrane, Alta.

Deviat, RCMP then learned, is well known to Alberta police and was the focus of a “shelter in place” warning on Sept.11, in the Bow Ridge community.

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At the time, police said a man was believed to be armed with a firearm and had left his residence on a scooter. Police in Cochrane advised people to not approach the man, who was last seen wearing a black shirt and grey pants.

There are several warrants and numerous charges pending out of Alberta for Deviat, who is supposed to be on 24-hour house arrest in Cochrane.

Kelowna RCMP said that efforts to return Deviat to Alberta on the out-of-province warrants were unsuccessful however he has been remanded in custody until Sept. 28, to appear again by video.

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Until then, the Kelowna matter remains under investigation as additional property located within the stolen trailer is also believed to be associated with recent local property theft.

“This individual already has some significant charges before the courts, not to mention the several warrants out of Alberta. His current court conditions did not deter him from coming to Kelowna where he finds himself in custody with new charges”  Cpl. Guillaume Tanguay said.

“The Proactive Enforcement teams remain vigilant and are strategically targeting those individuals responsible for our community’s property crimes.”