Edmonton police issue image of suspects connected to Amber Alert
Posted October 20, 2023 5:54 pm.
Last Updated October 23, 2023 4:48 pm.
Edmonton police have released an image of two men who are believed to be linked to an incident that prompted an Amber Alert Thursday evening.
EPS issued the alert for a 40-year-old woman who is blind and non-verbal and who was inside a vehicle that was stolen near 118 Avenue and 91 Street just before 8:30 p.m.
“Investigators believe these are the two male suspects who stole the vehicle last night with a vulnerable 40-year-old woman seated in a wheelchair inside the vehicle,” said EPS Northwest Branch Staff Sgt. Andrew Larson.
“We’re extremely grateful to the community and our RCMP partners who located the stolen vehicle and helped bring this woman back to her family safe and unharmed. We continue to look for any information that will lead us to these two male suspects.”
Police say the car was idling outside a store while the woman’s caregiver ran inside to make a purchase.
The vehicle was recovered by an off-duty RCMP officer in Fort Saskatchewan not long after it was taken, police say. The woman was found safe inside the vehicle.
The RCMP canine unit was called to the scene but was unable to track the two suspects.
Public alerts for vulnerable adults have been part of Alberta’s Amber Alert system since 2002, a provincial government spokesperson told CityNews.
“Alberta is unique in its use of the system for abductions involving adults with a proven mental or physical disability. While AMBER Alerts in other jurisdictions are issued to notify the public of a child abduction only, Alberta’s system issues alerts about incidents involving vulnerable adults as well to maximize public awareness and attention when it’s most critical.”
–Ministry of Public Safety and Emergency Services, Government of Alberta
EPS is asking anyone with any information to contact police at 780-423-4567 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
