Quebec provincial police retrieve stolen patrol car after morning ride
By The Canadian Press - Saturday, December 29, 2012 - 0 Comments
EPIPHANIE, Que. – Quebec provincial police were investigating an unusual crime on Saturday: the…
EPIPHANIE, Que. – Quebec provincial police were investigating an unusual crime on Saturday: the theft of one of their own patrol cars.
Gregory Gomez, a spokesman for the force, said the cruiser was stolen at around 5 a.m. when officers were responding to a domestic dispute in L’Epiphanie, about 50 kilometres north of Montreal.
Gomez said a 39-year-old man took off in the car while the officers were inside the residence.
“It was found about three hours later near where it was stolen,” Gomez said, adding that police weren’t sure where the car had been driven in the hours between.
Investigators were still looking for the suspect on Saturday afternoon.
Gomez said the man is known to police and could face charges including theft of a vehicle.
-
Bright idea: While supplies last
By Colin Campbell - Friday, April 29, 2011 at 8:01 AM - 0 Comments
Police in Texas hoard a stock of Crown Victorias
Alamy/GetStock
News last year that Ford will soon discontinue its Crown Victoria sedan sent police forces across North America reeling. The big, rear-wheel-drive Crown Vic has long been the go-to police cruiser. It’s relatively cheap (at under $30,000), built like a tank, and is easy to fix. So before the car disappears for good, the police in Austin, Texas, are asking the city government for US$4.5 million to buy a final supply of 176 Crown Victorias—enough to last them at least five years.
This hoarding of cop cars should end up saving the city a lot of money, say the police. Carmakers are rushing to market replacement cruisers, mostly based on today’s smaller sedans. But police in Austin argue they don’t yet know how much those cars will cost (likely a lot more than the old Fords), and switching would mean replacing their entire stock of replacement parts for the decades-old car. Most importantly, the police point out the newer cars just aren’t “tried and true” like their beloved Crown Vics.
