Saanich Police have arrested a man after he was caught in possession of a truck and sawmill that had been stolen in separate incidents.
Police were tipped off when a witness who had read about the stolen sawmill on social media spotted it on Monday night.
The witness reported seeing a white truck towing an orange portable sawmill just before 7:30 p.m. on September 28 in the 4600 block of Elk Lake Drive.
Officers responded and discovered that not only was the sawmill the one that had been reported stolen, but the truck that was towing it had been stolen in a separate incident in Nanaimo.
Police arrested the driver, a 34-year-old man from Ladysmith, on charges including possession of stolen property over $5,000, possession of break-in instruments, possession of a controlled substance, and two counts of driving with a suspended license.
“The quick sharing of information over social media played an important role in this file and we would like to thank the witness for alerting us,” said Cst. Markus Anastasiades.
“Both owners of these items, Wildwood Ecoforest and the Nanaimo River Salmonid Enhancement Project are non-profit organizations and these items were very valuable pieces of equipment.”
