A car thief is serving another two years behind bars after being sentenced on a rash of break-in, vehicle theft and mischief charges between Kamloops and Salmon Arm.
Douglas Laurence Jackson, who is in his late 30s, pleaded guilty on a number of the charges and was handed 31 months in jail by judge Raymond Phillips in Kamloops provincial court.
Court heard that on Oct. 18, 2022, police in Kamloops were notified a Ford F-350 had been stolen from a business on Singh Street in Brocklehurst. An officer later spotted the stolen vehicle parked outside the Budget Brake and Muffler on West Victoria Street, but no one was around the vehicle.
Police set up surveillance and spotted two males, one of whom was Jackson, unloading two bicycles from its box and pedal to an address on Brentwood Avenue.
Security footage of the suspected thieves matched the description of the two men who were spotted taking out the bikes and officers went back to the Brentwood house where they arrested Jackson, who had the keys to the truck in his pocket.
Jackson then breached conditions of his release for being out past curfew and possessing break-in tools when police found him walking near a recycling depot in Chase in December.
On Jan. 1, Jackson broke into a truck parked in an RV compound in Salmon Arm, damaging the door handle and ignition. Surveillance footage showed he jumped over a fence and attempted to open the doors to the business, but was unsuccessful.
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That same day, Jackson broke into another compound in Salmon Arm. Security footage showed him steal a Ford pickup truck and drive it through a fence, damaging the truck, which became inoperable. Jackson then fled on foot in the direction of a Rona store. Police would then receive a report of a stolen delivery truck from the Rona. A Salmon Arm RCMP officer who spotted the stolen vehicle attempted to pull it over, but Jackson fled, driving the vehicle through multiple stop signs and westbound in the eastbound lanes of Highway 1 to evade police, who halted their pursuit. The stolen delivery truck was found on a rural property near Salmon Arm later that day and a police dog tracked down Jackson nearby.
Then on Jan. 4, police received a report of a stolen truck from a Salmon Arm towing company. Police found the vehicle abandoned nearby with an empty gas tank. RCMP later arrested Jackson hiding out in a barn near where a search for the suspect had ended. He matched the description of the thief spotted stealing the vehicle on security camera footage.
Court also heard Jackson’s crimes were driven by alcohol and methamphetamine abuse.
Crown prosecutor Alex Wheele asked for a sentence above two years in jail while defence lawyer Sheldon Tate requested one between the two-year mark.
Judge Phillips sentenced Jackson to 930 days in jail. After being given credit for 212 days served in pre-sentence custody, Jackson has 718 days to serve behind bars. He was also handed a 12 month probation sentence to be served once released.
newsroom@saobserver.net
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