Bait car video shows high-speed crime spree
Police auto theft investigators have released what they call the most "chilling" bait car video they've ever seen – showing a car thief high on crystal methamphetamine and armed with a handgun.
Robert Osbourne's drug-fuelled crime spree – at more than 140 kilometres an hour – was caught on tape.
The 29-year-old Osbourne stole the truck in Aldergrove last June, not knowing it was wired with surveillance cameras, recording devices and tracking equipment.
Police say he pointed the handgun out the window a total of 14 times.
And in just half an hour, Osbourne stopped three times to break into other vehicles as well as smashing into three more.
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Even though police had the technology to disable the truck's engine, their policy at the time prevented them from doing so. Since this incident, that policy has been changed says Tim Shields of the Integrated Municipal-Provincial Auto Crime Team.
"Our policy now if a bait car is stolen, the engine is disabled immediately, even if a police officer is not behind or following," he says.
Osbourne ditched the truck and eluded police. But a month later, he was picked up in another stolen vehicle.
He was later convicted on 24 charges. He has been sentenced to four years in prison.
Police say the bait car program has reduced auto theft across the Lower Mainland by 15 per cent over the past year.
- FROM OCT. 5, 2004: Bait car program credited with drop in auto theft