A tense, early morning three-hour stand-off between police and a suspected thief trapped on a roof ended safely with a double arrest.
The incident happened around 1 a.m. last Thursday, Sept. 1, after a sharp-eyed neighbour in the 7,000 block of Afton Drive, near Francis and Gilbert roads, spotted someone trying to break into a nearby residence.
After being told by the neighbour that the homeowners were not around at the time, Mounties from Richmond RCMP’s Alpha Watch responded.
Multiple officers arrived within minutes and quickly set up a containment perimeter around the home in question.
According to the RCMP, one of the suspects, a 34-year old woman, surrendered quickly and was arrested by awaiting officers.
A second suspect then allegedly attempted to escape police custody by climbing out of a second storey window and onto the roof.
From there, it’s believed he jumped onto the roof of an adjacent home, before heavily-armed Mounties evacuated and escorted a family from that home, including two small children.
Over the next three and a half hours, officers out-waited the suspect and negotiated his surrender. He was then taken into custody without incident.
“Most of the time, the greatest tool we possess is not located in our duty belt. It is our voice,” said Richmond RCMP’s Cpl. Dennis Hwang.
“In this case, our voice was extremely effective in de-escalating this tense situation and minimizing the risk to the public. Our goal is always to minimize harm whenever possible.
“It was tremendous that the people in the community are keeping a watchful eye on one another’s property and immediately contacting police when suspicious activity is observed.”
Desiree Belisle, 34, of Surrey, is charged with one count of break and enter and Gregory Peterson, 40, of Burnaby, is charged is one count break and enter and one count of obstructing a police officer.
Both individuals are well known to police.
