Que. thief steals truck in Barrie, Ont., then arrested on 401 thanks to GPS tracking: Police

Police confirm they arrested the Quebec suspect involved in an alleged pickup truck theft in Barrie, Ont. back in April.

According to the Barrie Police Service (BPS), a male suspect broke into a parked Toyota Tundra pickup truck that was parked in Barrie near Bryne Drive. Police say the incident happened between 10 p.m. on April 29 and 7 a.m. on April 30.

The suspect allegedly manipulated the truck’s on-board diagnostics (OBD) port once he was in the truck, allowing him to steal it and drive away.

Once the owner noticed his truck was missing, police say he accessed its GPS system and provided the information to investigators.

Through that information, police say the BPS and OPP were able to stop and arrest the suspect while he was travelling east on Highway 401 in Quinte West.

Further combined investigation by the BPS and the South Simcoe Police Service (SSPS) Street Crime Auto Theft Unit claims the 34-year-old Quebec man is linked to three other stolen vehicle investigations.

The accused was charged with nine criminal offences related to four vehicle thefts and is being held in custody, pending bail.

A Barrie police media officer confirmed to CTV News that the truck was returned to its owner.

According to the BPS, this and other ongoing auto theft investigations were made possible by a recent grant that they and the SSPS received from the Ontario government to combat auto theft.