Salmon Arm RCMP made a dramatic downtown arrest of three suspects who are alleged to have robbed the Tappen Esso on Halloween.
At approximately 4:30 p.m. on Oct. 31, the Salmon Arm RCMP received a 911 call from the Tappen-area business reporting an armed robbery had just taken place. The suspect had shown a gun to an employee and demanded money before fleeing the scene in a gray pick-up truck.
The situation took place just as the Downtown Treat Trail Halloween event was winding to a close and many families were heading home.
The Silver Ford 150 ended up stopped on the Trans-Canada Highway near the Subway in downtown Salmon Arm.
A witness was able to provide police with a description of the occupants of the truck and a detailed description of the getaway vehicle, which included the B.C. licence plate.
“An alert officer who was in the downtown Salmon Arm area at the time and en route to the scene in Tappen, spotted the suspect vehicle traveling east on Hwy #1 in the down town area. Several police cars immediately converged on the vehicle,” says Staff Sgt. Scott West of the Salmon Arm detachment in a press release.
The suspect vehicle was stopped at the intersection of the Trans-Canada Highway and Alexander Street where three suspects, two men and a woman were quickly taken into custody.
“Police recovered an undisclosed amount of money, stolen property and a firearm. The vehicle involved was also seized,” says West.
Police could later be seen putting items from the truck into plastic bags and then placing them into the police cruisers. There were a total of four police vehicles on scene. Witnesses at the scene report an officer told them the situation involved the robbery at the Tappen Esso.
The robbery investigation is ongoing at this time but all three suspects; a 27-year-old man from Kamloops, a
36-year-old man from the Salmon Arm area and a 22-year-old woman from the Kamloops area are in police custody at this time.
Charges have yet to be recommended to Provincial Crown at this time.
