A Belgian tourist visiting Canada helped chase down her stolen SUV after the vehicle vanished with her passport and possessions inside.
The unusual series of events has given Laura Ramaekers a remarkable travel story that will be hard to top.
“It was so unreal, like in a movie,” she told CTV Kitchener.
Ramaekers was using the 2002 black Subaru Forester to travel across Canada, and she’d outfitted it with curtains, a closet, a bed and a mini camping fridge.
The vehicle was stolen Sunday from Snyders Flats, a nature preserve in Bloomingdale, Ont., where Ramaekers had been visiting with friends. It was her first day with the vehicle since picking it up in Belleville, Ont.
“My passport was in it, my credit cards, my Belgian credit cards, my Canadian credit cards -- everything,” she said.
Hours after the vehicle vanished, Ramaekers saw charges made to her credit cards, including purchases at a convenience store, a pharmacy and a gas station.
Security footage from the pharmacy shows a man and woman purchasing soda and lottery tickets with Ramaekers’ card. The video is so clear, Ramaekers could make out her other cards in the wallet.
“We were looking at all my other cards, and it was like – that’s my licence with my photo on it!” she said.
Ramaekers and a CTV Kitchener reporter left the pharmacy in a vehicle on Monday. As they drove away, Ramaekers spotted her stolen SUV zoom towards them. They quickly dialed 911 and trailed the vehicle.
They followed the stolen vehicle to an apartment complex. Waterloo Regional Police were on the scene moments later. One man was arrested.
Shortly afterward, Ramaekers was reunited with her SUV.
“Losing it and chasing it and finding it and even picking it up, all in 24 hours – it’s crazy,” she said.
Unfortunately, Ramaekers belongings – including her passport, IDs, clothing and mini fridge – were gone.
But a number of kind strangers pitched in to help. Ramaekers’ strange story generated plenty of attention in Waterloo, and she’s received donations of money, clothes and other goods from people hoping to make her stay in Canada a bit more comfortable.
Karen Wright donated cutlery, towels and clothing to Ramaekers. Wright’s 19-year-old daughter is travelling through Costa Rica, and she says she’d hope people would do the same for her.
“It just shows I guess how quickly word spreads in social media. Sometimes it can be a good thing,” Wright said.
Ramaekers said she’s overwhelmed by all the acts of goodwill.
“I’m very thankful to all the people who want to give me this stuff. I don’t think I deserve it because there are people who have it worse than I have. I’m just lucky.”
With files from CTV Kitchener
