Coquitlam firefighter chases down hit and run suspect
A motorist that crashed into a parked car on Pinetree Way last week didn't want to stick around to talk to police.
Unfortunately for him, one of the firefighters responding to the scene is a long-distance runner and was able to follow the suspect, who ran to his nearby home.
The address was relayed to the Coquitlam RCMP, who said the individual is facing careless driving and hit and run charges.
"They wanted to check him out at the scene for injuries," said Coquitlam fire chief Tony Delmonico. "He started walking away and eventually began jogging. One of our firefighters is a long distance runner and he stuck with him the whole way."
He added that firefighters do not usually chase suspects and only wanted to see if the man was hurt.
"Our goal wasn't to play police officer," he said. "The individual might have had some medical issues."
The crash occurred at about 2 p.m. on Feb. 18 when a Honda Civic collided with a silver Mazda that was parked at Pinetree Way and Robson Drive.
Coquitlam RCMP Const. Jamie Chung said it appeared to investigators that the vehicle was driving at a high rate of speed when it lost control and struck a parked car.
gmckenna@tricitynews.com
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