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Police chase stolen ambulance

Just as New Year celebrations were winding down at the Shaw Conference Centre, a man in his thirties got wound up – and ended up spending the first day of 2007 in the crowbar hotel.

Emergency Medical Service personnel were called to the convention facility at 9797 Jasper Avenue around 12:35 a.m. on January 1st, 2007 after reports of a man suffering a drug overdose came in.

A two-paramedic crew got out and assessed the patient and decided he needed treatment.

Just as they were loading him into the ambulance, the man became "extremely violent and dangerous."

He bolted through the rear partition and into the cab of the ambulance. The man then commandeered the vehicle and took off with sirens wailing and lights flashing.

The paramedics jumped out just before the man treated Edmontonians to the rare sight of an ambulance being chased by police – a spectacle usually reserved for injury-claim lawyers.

A police spokesman said the ambulance was driven “at high speeds, erratically, through tons of red lights” as it neared the northern outskirts of the city.

The ground chase was abandoned and the Air-1 police helicopter was called in, keeping a spotlight trained on the ambulance from above. No one was injured as the man drove through north Edmonton for over 90 blocks.

Near 195th Avenue and 82nd Street near Canadian Forces Base Edmonton, the ambulance went off the road, crashed through a gate and plunged into a snow bank.

The suspect bailed and fled on foot into a field where he was nabbed by Cst. Kelly Surman and Police Service Dog Chic.

The ambulance sustained serious damage but was expected to make a full recovery after treatment at a local body shop.

The two paramedics were somewhat shaken up but were otherwise fine.

“They’re seasoned professionals and have seen a lot of stuff, but this is definitely not a situation they thought was going to occur,” an EMS spokesman said.

Gerry Wiles, president of the paramedics union, said the crew had put cloth restraints on the man, who was acting "bizarre," but he managed to get out of them.

"The crew did the right thing. They feel threatened, they get out and let him have the ambulance."

Wiles said this wasn't the first time a patient has stolen an ambulance.

"It happens once or twice a year. But this is probably the furthest it's ever gone – usually it's someone driving it around the block."

David Roland Sinclair, 33, was charged with theft over $5,000, dangerous operation of a motor vehicle, criminal flight from police and two counts of impaired driving.

Sinclair appeared in court January 5th, 2007 to hear formal charges and was set to return January 26th.

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Wild wild west end shootings

Two separate shootings in Edmonton's west end had police hopping – and in one case, hopping mad.

Just before 7:00 p.m. on January 3rd, 2007 a possible road rage incident led to shots being fired into a car with a family inside.

The event began when a vehicle exited a parking lot near 149 Street and Stony Plain Road. After the vehicle pulled out, the driver noticed he was being aggressively followed by a white four-door hatchback. The two westbound cars then stopped at a red light at 167th Street and Stony Plain Road.

The passenger in the white hatchback leaned out the window and three shots were fired into the other vehicle carrying a 43-year-old man and three family members. Police later recovered three 9mm shell casings at the scene.

The man drove off and made his way to the side of the Superstore food outlet on 173rd Street where he called 911.

Emergency medical staff treated the man for hand and leg injuries initially thought to be bullet wounds but were later determined to have been caused by flying glass.

The Edmonton police gang unit were called in to assist in the investigation – standard policy when shots are fired – but it was soon determined the incident was not gang-related.

Police later said the occupants of the two vehicles did not know each other.

The apparently random shooting angered Insp. Allan Bohachyk who oversaw the investigation.

"[To shoot] into a car with multiple occupants is a horrific set of circumstances and it is as dangerous as any other violent criminal action can be."

“It was a family. I’m led to believe there [were] children as well,” Bohachyk said, adding they were lucky to be alive.

Bohachyk said the citizens of Edmonton have to step up and help police get guns and criminals off the streets.

"It has to stop. We need people to accept that this is no longer tolerable and we need some assistance to make it happen."

Police were looking for two adult black males seen driving a small white 4 door car, possibly a Honda hatchback, with pink and blue lightning bolt designs on its sides.

Witnesses to the shooting were asked to come forward and contact Edmonton police at 423-4567 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477)

An hour later police responded to reports of gunshots fired in an alley near 110 Avenue and 149 Street.

Witnesses heard 4 or 5 gunshots before seeing a black vehicle drive off. No injuries were reported.

Police said an altercation took place between two adult males near a parked car in the alley. At one point a male got into the car and fired several shots out the window towards the other male.

Officers scouring the scene found one shell casing and are investigating the possibility the incident was drug-related.

Initial findings suggest the shooting in the alley and the earlier shooting on Stony Plain Road were not connected.

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Two men stabbed

Two men are in hospital with stab wounds after an argument turned violent.

At about 4:30 p.m. on January 5th, 2007 police were called to an apartment building near 89th Street and 118th Avenue after a weapons complaint had come in.

Upon arrival they found two men with serious stab wounds – one of whom still had a knife stuck in his chest.

A 56-year-old man suffered multiple stab wounds to this neck, chest and abdomen. A 38-year-old man was stabbed in the abdomen.

Both were rushed to Royal Alexandra Hospital where the older man underwent immediate surgery and was listed in serious but stable condition. The other man was in serious but critical condition. Police said the men were expected to recover from their wounds.

A woman was taken into custoday at the scene but was later released. There was no word if charges were contemplated.

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Tower jumper lands in hot water on a cold and clear night

Was it a bird? Was it a plane?

Whatever it was, it caught the curiosity of two police officers who were circum-navigating the Bonnie Doon traffic circle at about 3:00 a.m. on January 5th, 2007.

As they scanned the clear skies under a just-waning full moon, police spotted what looked like a parachute coming down in a field near 83rd Street and 90th Avenue.

Police questioned a 29-year-old male parachutist after he landed who told them he had just jumped out of a plane.

However, there wasn't a plane to be seen and it soon became plain the man had just jumped off of something very tall ... like the 320-foot/90-metre Telus communications tower behind the fire station at the traffic circle.

The man, whose name wasn't released, was taken in for questioning and later released. He may face charges of trespassing and vandalism.

"This is an uncommon experience," a police spokesman said. "We're going over what charges he might be facing."

Police would have to prove how the man got onto the tower. "There's any number of things we're looking at right now," the spokesman said adding that Transport Canada – which regulates tower sites – and the owner of the tower are being consulted.

Telus officials said they would be reviewing security measures at the nearly forty-year-old orange-and-white steel tower which is surrounded by a two-metre high chainlink fence with an equally-high cage at its base.

“This is the first time we’ve ever had something like this happen on one of our towers,” a Telus spokesman told the Edmonton Sun.

“We’re not yet sure how he accomplished that,” he added.

“Obviously the individual was very determined. It’s extremely dangerous to access one of our sites – there’s any number of things that could happen.”

The man could have been electrocuted or gotten his parachute snagged on one of the tower's smaller antennae, he said.

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Van gets hammered

Afternoon shoppers were treated to a bizarre sight as what appeared to be a road-rage fueled incident led to a van being pummelled by a hammer.

At about 1:30 p.m. on January 6th, 2007 a van and a silver car were northbound on 50th Street north of 130th Avenue.

After the van cut the car off, two men got out of the silver car and attacked the van with a hammer.

One of the three men in the van received a blast of pepper spray, while another ended up being pinned between the two vehicles.

After the men from the car had finished smashing the windows and doors of the van they quickly took off, disappearing into the busy traffic along the commercial strip.

Police are looking for witnesses and are asking those with information to contact the non-emergency line at 423-4567.

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Death at the Grand

On January 24th, 2007 paramedics arrived at the Grand Hotel on the corner of 103rd Street and 103rd Avenue after being called to deal with a body at around 11:30 a.m.

Upon entering a second floor hotel room, EMS staff found a deceased male in his 60s. They immediately suspected foul play and police were called.

Within an hour homicide detectives arrived, followed shortly thereafter by a forensics team.

“It looks like a crime scene in there,” said Acting Insp. Jamie Ewatski. “There is some blood and things are not adding up right."

"And so erring on the side of caution we called in our resident experts – the homicde investigators – to give us a hand."

"For right now we’re treating this as a suspicious death,” Ewatski said.

Officers conducted door-to-door interviews and talked to hotel staff and patrons in the adjoining bar. Area dumpsters and parked vehicles were also checked.

The Grand Hotel is across the street from Edmonton's Greyhound bus station, in an area where transients frequent. Some occupants of the hotel live there on a long-term basis.

Results from an autopsy later revealed the man's death was non-criminal.

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High noon in Clareview

It was at about 12:45 p.m. on January 26th, 2007 when police received calls of a man lying on a street beside a running vehicle that had its windows shot out. Rap music was heard pouring out of the car's stereo.

Emergency crews arrived at an intersection near 24th Street and 136th Avenue and found a man suffering from gunshot wounds. The man had fallen out of his white four-door Chrysler Dynasty after earlier being shot a half-block south.

He had managed to drive a short distance and turn on his car's four-way flashers before being overcome by his injuries. The shooting victim was rushed to the Royal Alexandra Hospital with at least two abdominal bullet wounds. He underwent emergency surgery and was expected to survive.

No one else was with the victim in his car at the time. The gang unit was called out to the drive-by shooting, standard practice in incidents involving gunfire.

Witnesses heard several gunshots which were believed to have come from another vehicle that was spotted racing away from the scene.

The victim's car was riddled with at least six bullets: three in the driver's door, one in a side door and both driver-side windows were shot out.

Police say both vehicles were parked when the shots were fired, and that the gunman was outside his car when he opened fire.

By 7:00 p.m. police had arrested 25-year-old Miguel Angel Alvarado after he was spotted in a south-side neighbourhood.

A police tactical unit waited until he left the residential community in his car, then moved in as he drove into an industrial yard where he surrendered without incident.

Alvarado was charged with attempted murder with a firearm, discharge of a firearm with intent to endanger life, unauthorised possession of a firearm in a motor vehicle, and careless use of firearm.

Investigators later determined Alvarado and his victim knew each other and that the shooting was not gang-related.

Alvarado appeared in court and was formally charged on January 30th, 2007. His next appearance, a bail application, was set for February 5th.

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Suspicious death in Queen Mary Park

Police and paramedics arrived at an apartment complex in the Queen Mary Park area at about 6:30 p.m. on January 26th, 2007. There they found a man in his 60s in a suite at 10620 114 Street – dead without apparent cause.

Homicide detectives were called in as a precaution. Several items in the suite were broken and the place looked like it had been turned upside down, according to reports.

The man's body was discovered by friends who came to check on him after he didn't show up for work.

They said he worked as a security guard at a local bank and hadn't been seen or heard from for nearly a week.

Edmonton police Acting Sgt. Terry Rocchio spoke to Global Edmonton cameras at the scene.

"Homicide investigators are just coming out. They're going to be the initial investigators on it and they'll make the determination on what direction they will follow."

Police later said the man's death was not a criminal death and the investigation was taken over by the medical examiner.

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At Mac's, a knife

At about 4:30 a.m. on January 27th, 2007 police were called to a Mac's convenience store at 3923 106 Street after an altercation broke out between two groups of males.

Two men were inside waiting for a ride when four males entered the store. One of the four asked the pair for some money.

When the two turned the man down, a sharp object, likely a knife, was produced and the pair were attacked.

The two men were rushed to hospital with chest and abdominal wounds.

A 19-year-old man was listed in critical condition and a 24-year-old man was in serious but stable condition.

Shortly after releasing images taken by the store's security cameras, police received tips that led to the identification of three of the men wanted. One suspect, a 16-year-old male, was charged with two counts of aggravated assault. The other two were interviewed and released.

However, a fourth man by the name of Matthew Lorne Anderson was still being sought.

He was described as being 22 years old, 5-feet 9-inches tall and weighing 200 lbs, with hazel-coloured eyes and short brown hair with blonde highlights.

Anderson faces two charges of aggravated assault and assault with a weapon.

Those with information are asked to contact Edmonton police at 423-4567, Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477) or online at www.tipsubmit.com - a secure tip submission web site.

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POLICE LINE: DO NOT CROSS

Missing: Robin Douglas Goodwin

Edmonton police are seeking the public's help in locating Robin Douglas Goodwin, a 45-year-old man last seen in mid-September 2006.

Goodwin was last seen at his place of work in Nisku on Friday, September 22nd, 2006. He didn't show up for work the following Monday. Described as reliable and hard-working, Goodwin gave no indication that he wanted to quit.

He has not made contact with his family in Saskatchewan since then, nor has anyone seen him in or around his residence in the Maple Ridge mobile home park in Edmonton.

Edmonton police were contacted when it was brought to their attention that Goodwin had not been seen in four months. There was no evidence to suggest foul play or that he had planned to disappear. Neither scenario has been ruled out.

Goodwin is 5-feet 8-inches tall and weighs approximately 190 lbs. He has brown eyes, brown/grey hair and was sporting a moustache the last time he was seen.

On June 24th, 2008 RCMP announced that human remains found near Vegreville, Alberta were that of Robin Douglas Goodwin.

The partial remains were discovered 25 kilometres west of Vegreville on November 3rd, 2007.

Goodwin was identified through DNA analysis.

Those with information are asked to contact Vegreville RCMP at 780-623-2223, Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477) or online at www.tipsubmit.com - a secure tip submission web site.

Future updates to this matter can be found on the Robin Douglas Goodwin page.

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deadmonton 2007 - january crime report