North Bay police use drone, thermal imaging to catch suspect on the run

Police track suspect through woods with drone WATCH: Video footage from a drone with thermal imaging tracking a suspect on the run from police through a wooded area of North Bay.

A North Bay suspect who fled police on an ATV into the woods was captured using a drone with night vision.

It was around 5 a.m. Dec. 5 when an officer on general patrol in North Bay noticed a man driving an ATV, on Pinewood Park Drive.

"The alert officer recognized the ATV as one that had been used in two thefts at Lakeshore Drive businesses over the past month," police said in a news release Thursday.

"When the officer attempted to stop the vehicle, the driver fled at a high rate of speed. The ATV entered a trail where it became stuck in a snowbank causing the driver to flee on foot."

Officers deployed a drone and were able to find the suspect running through the woods, leading to the 40-year-old's arrest.

"The use of drone technology has greatly improved our ability to locate and arrest suspects who attempt to evade arrest by running into wooded areas or into the darkness," Insp. of operations Jeff Warner said in the news release.

"The powerful lighting can illuminate a wide area increasing officer safety by improving visibility as our officers close in on a suspect to make an arrest."

During a search of the suspect, officers found an edged weapon.

He is charged with two counts of theft, dangerous driving, possession of a prohibited weapon, having a weapon while under a prohibition and flight from police.

The accused was held for a bail hearing.