Kokihara closure has nothing to do with high-profile police case: RCMP

The police chase that led to Coquihalla’s closure on Wednesday resulted in the arrest of two people and is believed to be unrelated to other high-profile incidents in either Coquitlam or Merritt, officials said.

According to the RCMP, around 6pm, the two men were found and arrested without incident. They were transferred to the Merritt RCMP Detachment.

“An investigation has confirmed that a black Dodge Ram 2500 was stolen from Coquitlam and the license plate attached to the vehicle was stolen from Langley,” Merritt’s Josh Roda said in a press release. said to

“We are aware of online speculation regarding the identities of these suspects. There is no indication that they are related.”

On Tuesday, the RCMP dealt with an armed robbery at a Coquitlam car dealership, escalating into what was described as “multiple scenes” in the Tri-City area. There have been several incidents at Merritt in the last week, including shootings and kidnappings.

The incident, now believed to be unrelated, was underway around 12:15 p.m. when a stolen black Dodge Ram pickup was found driving through Kokihala near the Kokihala summit. .

The RCMP said in a press release that the road closure had been initiated, but the vehicle fled and continued down a side road. The truck then became stranded and three occupants escaped from the vehicle.

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“Initial witnesses reported that one of the fugitive suspects had a firearm,” the RCMP said.

“A dozen construction workers at a nearby worksite were evacuated as they were close to the suspect’s last sighting.”

Officers from the Merritt RCMP detachment and the Southeast District Emergency Response Team were dispatched to the area to begin a search for the suspect.

A woman was found and arrested shortly thereafter, while the two men believed to be in the vehicle remained at large at the time.

“Out of an abundance of caution, the highway was closed for several hours while we searched for these suspects,” said Sergeant Roda.

“Without knowing their identities or intentions, and without reports indicating they were armed, we felt it best to keep all civilians away from the scene.”

The Merritt RCMP has dashcam video or was near the Juliet Bridge just south of Merritt near the Coquihala Summit to call the Merritt RCMP between 11:30am and 2:00pm on Nov. 23. I’m asking eyewitnesses. 378-4262.

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