On-duty cop injured in line of duty

RCMP is asking anyone who may have witnessed an alleged assault of an RCMP officer in the early

hours of Monday morning.

An officer was conducting a traffic stop with a vehicle in the alleyway of Latimer Street, between Wade Ave. and Orchard Ave. in Penticton, when a vehicle unrelated to the traffic stop backed into the passenger vehicle at about 12:30 a.m. Monday.

The suspect vehicle suddenly pulled forward, struck the uniformed police officer, side swiped the marked police vehicle and fled the scene. The driver of the passenger vehicle was not injured, while the police officer was transported to hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

Investigators believe that the suspect vehicle, a white Kia Forte had been reported as stolen on Saturday in Kelowna’s Rutland area.

Shortly before 7 a.m., RCMP was dispatched to a vehicle fire, in a wildland area near Fairwinds Drive in Osoyoos. Front-line officers responded where they discovered the stolen Kia Forte. Another vehicle, a dark blue late 90’s Nissan pickup truck, was reported to police as stolen from a nearby location.

A short time before 11:30 a.m., RCMP responded to a motel in Osoyoos, where the stolen Nissan pickup truck was found abandoned.

Anyone with any additional information about any of these incidents, or who has video surveillance footage that may aid investigators is urged to call the Penticton RCMP or Osoyoos RCMP or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800222-8477.