Overnight carjacking case in east-central Alberta highlights RCMP operations centre’s pivotal role

An officer works inside the Alberta RCMP's real-time operations centre on Dec. 17, 2025.

Units from several RCMP detachments and departments worked together last week in east-central Alberta in an armed robbery case.

It started early Thursday morning near Two Hills, where a man was sleeping in his car on Highway 36 when two people approached it, shot out a window, took him out of the vehicle, then stole it.

Police from Two Hills responded to a call at 12:40 a.m., informing them of the robbery. It soon involved officers from Bonnyville, Cold Lake, St. Paul, Vegreville and Elk Point as the robbers made their way east to the Cold Lake area, as well as assistance from the RCMP’s real-time operations centre in Edmonton and specialized units such as police dog services, remote piloted aircraft systems and the emergency response team.

After a high-speed chase and police attempts to pull the car over, the robbers drove onto a lease site. One of them, a 20-year-old man, abandoned the vehicle and fled on foot.

A police dog tracked, located and stopped him. He was treated for dog bites. Police arrested and charged him and a 20-year-old woman, who had stayed in the car, with several offences. The pair was slated to appear in court at Vegreville on Monday.

RCMP said the victim wasn’t injured.

Supt. Anthony Hanson, the assistant district officer for Eastern Alberta, said on Monday that RCMP chose to hold a media conference about the case to highlight that “significant resources” were used in it and that the work didn’t fall to just one detachment.

“I think it’s important that our contract partners and the public understand all the pieces that go into play to ensure their and their families’ safety,” he told reporters.

Hanson said the case also highlights how the real-time operation centre “takes control” by coordinating units and officers from different detachments in such a situation.