An off-duty Mountie arrested a man Tuesday evening after he stole several DVDs from a Maple Ridge store.
The Surrey cop was near Rogers Video in the 20300-block of Dewdney Trunk Road when he heard a door alarm sound and saw a man leaving the building.
The cop immediately confronted the man and found him in possession of several stolen DVDs.
Ridge Meadows RCMP were called and the man was taken into custody.
Cpl. Dale Somerville said the man arrested is well known to police in Vancouver, West Vancouver and North Vancouver.
He was held in custody on the theft charges for court on Wednesday.
Woman assaults ex
A 42-year-old woman was arrested by police Thursday in Maple Ridge for allegedly assaulting her ex-boyfriend.
Police arrived at the apartment complex on 224th Street around midnight as the woman drove away.
She was stopped by another police officer who noted she had been drinking alcohol.
The officer made a demand for samples of her breath, which produced ‘fail’ readings on a roadside screening device.
As a result, she had her driving privileges suspended and her car was impounded for 90 days.
The woman was then arrested on allegations of assault and held in police custody for a court appearance later in the day.
Cops honoured
Four officers with the Ridge Meadows RCMP were recognized for their efforts to prevent and catch drunk drivers.
Constables Mitch Gordon, Kyle Sametz, Mike Moore and Tony Eeftink were named to “Team Alexa” last week because they each investigated more than 10 impaired drivers last year.
The award is in memory of Alexa Middelaer, a four-year-old who’s killed by an impaired driver in 2008.
“This is not police recognizing police,” said Supt. Dave Walsh.
“The recognition comes from Alexa’s parents Laurel and Michael Middelaer.”
To be eligible for the award, a police officer should have investigated a minimum of 10 criminal impaired drivers in 2010.
“I want to commend our four officers who received this year’s awards,” added Walsh.
“Although not all of our officers were recognized, I also wish to pass along my thank-you to all of our uniformed general duty and traffic members for all the drinking drivers they have taken off our roads in 2010, and who continue to do so in 2011.”
(From left) Const. Michael Moore, Const. Kyle Sametz, Laurel Middelaer, Const. Mitch Gordon and Insp. Derren Lench at the awards ceremony in Surrey last week.