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Weyburn CTSS officers file serious charges from traffic stops

Traffic officers don’t just write speeding tickets.
RCMP traffic blitz

Traffic officers don’t just write speeding tickets. While keeping our roads safe, these officers also help identify and combat criminal activity, as demonstrated through two recent traffic stops by Weyburn Combined Traffic Services Saskatchewan (CTSS) officers.

A Weyburn CTSS officer was conducting a patrol on Highway 39, northwest of Weyburn on June 24, at approximately 1:15 p.m., and the officer observed a speeding vehicle. The police vehicle’s automated license plate reader (ALPR) indicated that the speeding vehicle had been reported as stolen. The officer stopped the vehicle and as a result of investigation, the driver, Nam Nguyen, 35, from Regina is charged with one count of possession of property obtained by crime over $5,000 (vehicle); one count, possession of Schedule 1 drug (methamphetamine), and two counts of failing to comply with probation order.

He was also ticketed for driving while suspended and speeding. Nguyen will appear in court on September 14, 2021.

A female passenger was also charged with theft under $5,000. The Weyburn RCMP detachment assisted in this investigation.

Weyburn and Regina Police Service CTSS officers were conducting a traffic stop on Highway #1, west of Qu’Appelle, on June 27, at approximately 3:30 p.m., with their emergency lights activated.

Another vehicle drove past them, travelling 83 km/hr as recorded by one of the officers. The vehicle was subsequently stopped and an officer administered a roadside oral fluid device test on the driver, which detected cannabis use.

Further investigation resulted in 16 cartons of illegal cigarettes being seized from the vehicle. The driver received tickets for passing an emergency vehicle over 60 km/hr and a Tobacco Tax Act violation, plus a roadside driver’s licence suspension and vehicle impoundment.

“These incidents illustrate that not only do traffic services officers enforce driving laws, but they conduct ongoing work to disrupt the transport of illicit drugs and other contraband,” said Sgt. Cathy Walter, of Weyburn CTSS.

“In one case, the ALPR – which alerts officers if a vehicle is stolen or unregistered, or the driver is suspended or wanted – provided the information we needed to recover this car and make an arrest. In the other, illegal cigarettes were seized and a potentially impaired driver was removed from the road.”