The only woman on B.C.'s Top 10 Most Wanted Car Thief list has been caught.
Stephanie Rene Deschene's history of car theft – going back several years – helped the 20-year-old make the Integrated Municipal Provincial Auto Crime Team's list.
She's been on the run since the list was released to the public on March 31.
Sgt. Gord Elias said the IMPACT Enforcement team, with the help of the Langley Street Crime Unit, caught Deschene shortly after she allegedly broke into a Cloverdale-area home on May 19.
She had already located the car keys when she was interrupted by the home owner, Elias said. She allegedly then rushed outside to make her getaway in the minivan parked in the driveway.
Elias says she drove by waiting officers at the Surrey-Cloverdale border.
"She went right by in the stolen vehicle," Elias told ctvbc.ca.
Police followed Deschene with the assistance of the Air One helicopter.
They arrested her when she stopped to let her dog out at a park, Elias said.
"She just gave up," Elias said.
Though Deschene was the only woman on this year's list, there have been a few others in the seven-year history of the list.
Less than two months after the release of their 2011 list, police have already caught six of the 10 most wanted.
"We usually have more by this time," Elias said. "This is proving to be a very elusive list."
IMACT releases the list in time for April, which is B.C.'s Auto Crime Enforcement Month. The agency takes submissions of possible offenders from officers around the province and use two main criteria to choose the lucky winners: those who make the list must be known car thieves and they must be wanted on a valid warrant in B.C.
"Usually our list contains prolific car thieves that are a little more difficult to find," Elias said.
He says Deschene has been known to police for years now and frequently stole vehicles from the Surrey-Langley area. Elias says this isn't the first time she's broken into a home to steal a vehicle.
Elias expects Deschene to appear in court on the new charges on Tuesday.
