A 57-year-old Coquitlam man is facing charges in connection to a break-and-enter and police-car-ramming in Mission on Wednesday (Jan. 17).
Paul Fontaine has been charged with offences including break and enter, flight from police, and dangerous driving, Mission RCMP say.
Fontaine was arrested after Mission RCMP requested the public’s assistance and received multiple tips.
According to the detachment’s initial release, CCTV footage captured a man using a pickup truck to ram through a garage door of a residence on Cottonwood Street in Mission at approximately 10:45 a.m on Jan. 17.
Mounties say the man stole several items from the residence, including two toolboxes and a Husky air compressor, before leaving and returning at roughly 11:30 a.m. On the second trip, the man allegedly stole a safe containing two firearms, jewelry and other family items.
Not long after, Mission RCMP found the man driving the truck on Lougheed Highway near Wren Street. Officers attempted to block the truck but RCMP say the driver rammed his truck into one of the police cars and sped away.
The officer wasn’t injured in the incident.
“Not only did this individual break into someone’s home and steal numerous belongings including firearms, but the fact that he was willing to ram his truck into a police car to get away highlights the risk he poses,” Mission RCMP Cpl. Harrison Mohr said in a news release.