THUNDER BAY — City police have arrested a man they say made a dramatic escape from officers in a stolen vehicle on Wednesday before surrendering himself.
Officers were dispatched to a property on Eira Street, which runs behind a commercial strip on Memorial Avenue that includes Value Village, around 11:15 p.m. on Tuesday.
Police were responding to a report of a male sitting in the driver’s seat of a running vehicle inside a locked compound.
The vehicle smashed through the gates of the compound when officers arrived, the Thunder Bay Police Service stated in a release.
Police decided not to pursue the vehicle after officers unsuccessfully attempted to stop it at the scene, and the driver continued through a second gate, causing “significant damage” as he pulled out of the compound.
However, another officer was able to locate the vehicle on the Harbour Expressway within minutes, finding it unoccupied.
The man was taken into custody after exiting the bush in the area with his hands up, police said.
The police service could not immediately confirm details about the property from which the vehicle was stolen.
Police have charged Ivan Winter, 24, of Angling Lake, Ont., with impaired operation, two counts of mischief over $5,000, flight from police, possession of property obtained by crime, and refusal to comply with demand.
Winter appeared in court Thursday and was released with a future appearance date.
