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Westlock RCMP busy over the holidays

Store break-ins and stolen car top police blotter
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WESTLOCK - A northern Alberta man faces robbery, arson and flight from police charges for stealing a car at a local dealership after setting another one on fire in a grocery store parking lot.

Westlock RCMP Staff Sgt. Al Baird confirmed that early morning Dec. 31 a man attempted to steal a car from the Sobeys parking lot.

Baird said that somebody attempted to talk to the man, but he proceeded to set the car on fire and left the scene.

According to a Facebook post from the alleged victim in a community group, the incident took place between 5:30 and 6 a.m. — the fire was extinguished, but some things were found to be missing from inside the car.

The man then went to Westlock Motors where he allegedly threatened an employee with a knife and managed to steal a car — a 2019 white GMC Terrain. Once the theft was reported, RCMP was able to geo-track the vehicle through OnStar.

Todd Ducharme, general manager at Westlock Motors, explained that OnStar is a General Motors in-car communication system through which the vehicle can be tracked down.

“They were able to get behind him and a short pursuit was initiated. Eventually, the vehicle was stopped in St. Albert and the driver was taken into custody there,” said Baird.

Ducharme added that through OnStar, “what they did is they powered down the vehicle so (the man) was restricted to his speed. Once they got close, they actually shut the vehicle down and they lock it so he can’t flee.”

He also commended the RCMP for a quick, cooperative response which led to a speedy recovery of the vehicle.

Darcy Brian Loyie, 35, from the Hamlet of Faust in Big Lakes County stands charged with robbery, uttering threats, arson, flight from police and possession of stolen property less than $5,000. He is currently in custody at the Edmonton Remand Centre, awaiting a provincial court date in Westlock Jan. 22.

“The person had run in with the law before,” added Baird, without giving details on previous offence types or dates.

Rexall break-ins

Twice over the course of the holiday break, a local drug store was broken into and items worth around $1,000 total were stolen, but police won’t release more details since the matter is still being investigated.

Baird confirmed that the business was broken into Dec. 25 at 2:30 a.m. and Jan. 1 at 4:15 a.m.

Both times, RCMP responded to the alarm calls.

“Some items were taken but we’re going to hold that back for now … It’s an investigation and we don’t want to release that, it’ll make it harder for us to track these guys down,” said Baird.

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