Man to stand trial on fewer charges

A 22-year-old Calgary man accused of breaking into car dealerships in Lethbridge in 2017 will stand trial this summer, but on far fewer charges than those he originally faced.

Eric Christopher Smith had pleaded not guilty in February to more than three dozen criminal charges, and was anticipating a trial that would last more than a week. But Thursday in Lethbridge provincial court, the Crown replaced the 37-count information with 22 charges, including shopbreaking, flight from police, dangerous driving, motor vehicle theft, possession of stolen property, assaulting a peace officer, mischief and resisting arrest.

The new charges don’t include two counts of drug possession that were part of the original information, and the trial, which was anticipated to last seven days, has been reduced to one day, and is scheduled to run Aug. 21.

Police reported in December that at about 9:53 p.m. Nov. 30, 2017, they responded to a break-in at Dunlop Ford in the 1500 block of Mayor Magrath Drive South after a man driving a stolen truck plowed into one of the business’s overhead doors, then took a set of keys and stole an F350 truck.

While police investigated the theft, the suspect drove the stolen truck to Bridge City Chrysler in the 3200 block of 1 Avenue South and crashed into another overhead door. He again took keys and drove a Fiat Spider down the street where, police believe, he intended to return later to pick up the vehicle.

As he attempted to move other vehicles from the lot, a security officer arrived and the suspect fled in a Dodge Ram 1500.

Just before 12:30 a.m. the following day a police officer saw the suspect in the stolen truck near the dealership and two other officers blocked the vehicle’s path. The man rammed both police vehicles, however, and fled east on Highway 3 where police pursued him as he left the city limits.

RCMP deployed a spike belt, disabling the truck, but the driver fled on foot. He was later found in a shed and caught by a police dog.

Smith, who appeared in court Thursday by closedcircuit TV from the Lethbridge Correctional Centre, also faces one additional charge under the Traffic Safety Act of driving without insurance. That charge will likely be addressed in August, as well.

Follow @DShurtzHerald on Twitter