A careless driver was pulled over and charged twice in one day after driving dangerously and crashing a rented car, April 20.
Shortly before noon, the Airdrie Integrated Traffic Unit received calls regarding a white Mitsubishi Lancer being driven erratically in the northbound lanes of Highway 2 just north of Calgary.
Multiple callers reported seeing the vehicle travelling at an extremely high speed, weaving in and out of traffic, and passing other motorists on the shoulder of the highway.
Before police could intercept the vehicle, it was involved in a single-vehicle collision just north of Highway 72.
There were no injuries and the vehicle was driveable after being towed out of the ditch.
Officers arrived on scene shortly after the collision, and charged the driver - a 28-year-old man from Calgary - with one count of careless driving.
About two hours after the man was released from the scene, the Airdrie Integrated Traffic Unit began to receive multiple 911 calls a second time, regarding a white Mitsubishi Lancer travelling southbound on Highway 2 near Didsbury.
Again, the Lancer was reported to be driving in and out of traffic at high speed and passing on the shoulder without regard for the safety of other motorists.
One of the responding officers clocked the Lancer on radar at 176 km/h just before it was intercepted, about one kilometre north of Airdrie in the southbound lanes of Highway 2.
Officers soon discovered that the operator of the Lancer was the same individual who had crashed the vehicle earlier in the day while northbound on Highway 2. This time, the driver was arrested and charged with one count of dangerous driving.
The Mitsubishi Lancer, which is owned by a rental agency in Calgary, was seized and towed back to the rental agency.
“This case is of particular concern to responding officers because of the extreme disregard for the safety of the public shown by the driving pattern of the accused, and the fact the neither a collision nor Traffic Safety Act charges deterred the accused from again driving in a reckless manner only a few hours later,” said Sheriff Jason Graw.
“The Airdrie Integrated Traffic Unit would also like to take this opportunity to thank the motorists that called in to 911 to report this individual. Traffic safety is a partnership between enforcement agencies and the communities that they serve and while traffic members are not always present to see these types of offences being committed, it is often through tips from the public that these incidents can be thoroughly investigated and drivers held accountable for their actions.”
Anyone with information regarding on any unsolved crime is asked to call the Airdrie RCMP at 403-945-7200 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
