Former Trail resident Zachery Shoblom, 26, was arrested for theft, possession of stolen property and robbery on Jan. 19 after several reports of thefts, attempted break-ins and suspicious persons near the Riverside Drive area.
According to Grand Forks RCMP Staff Sgt. Jim Harrison, all events occurred between Jan. 15 and Jan. 17 and are linked to Shoblom.
The first incident was reported on Jan. 15 from St. John’s United Church of Canada on Central Ave., where a black purse was stolen.
On Jan. 16 at 10:42 a.m., a stolen wallet from an entrance of a residence on 82nd Ave was reported.
The wallet contained $200.
“The person had left his wallet and keys at the front door of the residence and when he came back to get them they were gone,” stated Harrison.
The next day at 6:48 a.m., sunglasses and a small amount of change was taken from an unlocked car at a residence of Riverside Drive
At 8:57 a.m., on 80th Ave, there was a report of an attempted break-and-enter into a garage. The mesh screens on the garage had been bent out, however, it appeared that no entry was gained.
Later that afternoon at 1 p.m., there was a report of a cut mesh screen on a travel trailer that was parked at a residence on Riverside Drive. No entry was made into the trailer.
A few hours later, there was another report of a break-and-entry into a shed on Riverside Drive.
“Unfortunately, it’s unknown if anything was taken because some items were moved around in the shed,” Harrison said.
Harrison added there were other complaints about suspicious persons in the area.
Shortly after midnight on Jan. 19, RCMP arrested Shoblom who had recently been living on 82nd Ave. in Grand Forks.
Shoblom is also wanted in Trail for a robbery at Frosty’s Beer and Wine Store that occurred on Jan. 11.
“He was found to be in possession of the purse that was stolen from St. John’s United Church on the 15th,” explained Harrison, along with identification from the stolen wallet. All the cash that stolen were not retrieved.
“Subsequently he was charged with robbery in the Trail incident, and theft and possession of stolen property for the incident that occurred in Grand Forks on the Jan. 15,” stated Harrison. “We believe he came into the community around Jan. 13 or 14 and in that very short period of time he caused a lot of problems.”
Shoblom was remanded into custody and will be making an appearance via video link in Rossland court on Feb. 9.