A dramatic, high-speed chase in a stolen car down Ontario’s busiest highways with a helicopter in pursuit?
It may sound like a scene from a video game, but this real-life incident began, coincidentally, at a Thornhill video game shop.
Police were alerted to a break-in at an EB Games store near Bathurst Street and Centre Street on April 7.
“We actually were alerted by an alarm security company that someone had smashed the window,” said York Regional Police (YRP) Sgt. Clint Whitney.
Police arrived on the scene to find smashed glass and several video games, as well as systems, missing.
Whitney mentioned that some of that merchandise was recovered.
Officers also observed two male suspects leaving the store and getting into a vehicle.
What followed after that was a high-speed chase through Vaughan, down Highway 400, then to Highway 401 and, eventually, into Halton Region.
The chase on the ground was eventually terminated in order to preserve public safety.
“At one point, the speed reached 150 kilometres per hour,” said Whitney.
However, YRP had backup — a helicopter from their air services unit pursued the car throughout various parts of the GTA.
The chase terminated in Hamilton where the suspects abandoned the car and entered an apartment building.
Police searched the car and found it to be a stolen vehicle from Mississauga. At this point they were able to recover some of the stolen merchandise.
A warrant has since been issued for the arrest of one of the suspects identified in connection with the robbery.
He is a 25-year-old man of no fixed address, but who is known to travel across the GTA. A photo of the man is available on the York Regional Police website. As of yet, police have not identified the accomplice.
Police believe this man to be dangerous.
Staff at the EB Games store could not offer comment on the incident.
