A truck was stolen from Nanaimo North Town Centre on Wednesday, March 23 but recovered just 20 minutes later. (Jordan Davidson/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By NanaimoNewsNOW Staff

SHORT RIDE

Stolen pick-up truck quickly returned to owner at Nanaimo shopping centre

Mar 24, 2022 | 2:44 PM

NANAIMO — A local man’s joyride with a stolen vehicle lasted less than a standard sitcom episode.

Police responded to reports of a vehicle theft in the early afternoon of Wednesday, March 23. The owner of the truck, who works at Nanaimo North Town Centre, spotted their vehicle being driven away by an unknown person.

Nanaimo RCMP Reserve Cst. Gary O’Brien said only a few minutes later, the pickup truck with a red canopy was spotted by police driving south on Hwy. 19A near Brooks Landing.

“We had unmarked and patrol cars, they saw the vehicle and driver in the area of Departure Bay Rd. They surveilled it with their unmarked cars until the person parked it and when he was walking away he was surrounded with a number of police cars, including Police Dog Services.”

David Lee McCauley’s time in the stolen truck…around 20 minutes.

major trafficking operations

Over 130 arrested, 51 charged, drugs & weapons seized after months-long operation in Nanaimo

2h ago

B.C. championship

Nanaimo Minor Hockey U18 T1 Clippers primed for provincials

5h ago

Block Watch

Motivated neighbours launching Nanaimo's latest Block Watch

11h ago

McCauley faced a longer ride to the Nanaimo RCMP detachment, where the 47-year-old spent Wednesday night in police cells. He appeared in court on Thursday.

“This guy obviously didn’t know what was going on because he thought he was scott-free,” O’Brien said. “Nevertheless the truck was recovered.”

O’Brien added officers were able to make such quick work of the situation due to the nature in which dispatch information is shared.

“When [the public] call 911 or they’re reporting something, they’re concerned and want police officers to attend, they don’t have to be screaming at our dispatchers to get police, because that information is being relayed to [officers] in real time.”

Police said McCauley has no fixed address and will remain in police custody until a second court appearance on April 5. He faces two charges: possession of stolen property over $5000 and possession of break-in tools.

Court records showed McCauley has a lengthy criminal record, including numerous jail sentences on the Lower Mainland for various property crimes.

McCauley has numerous driving infractions on his record, including most recently being handed a one year driving prohibition in December.

McCauley has had multiple recent run-ins with Nanaimo RCMP, with O’Brien describing him as a “well known” to officers and a “local criminal”.

He faces various property related charges and a resisting arrest charge for alleged separate incidents in Nanaimo in February, court records showed.

Join the conversation. Submit your letter to NanaimoNewsNOW and be included on The Water Cooler, our letters to the editor feature.

info@nanaimonewsnow.com

On Twitter: @NanaimoNewsNOW