A stolen vehicle that was involved in a high-speed chase on Highway 407 on Friday night was set ablaze underneath a bridge in Mississauga sometime Saturday morning, police say.
Officers at 22 Division on Hurontario Street in Brampton first noticed the vehicle in their parking lot while reviewing security camera feeds at around 9:30 p.m.
For a reason that is not yet clear, police decided to run the vehicle’s licence plate.
At that point it was discovered that the vehicle was stolen and had been involved in several gas-and-dash thefts across the GTA.
According to Const. Rachel Gibbs, officers then went outside and approached the vehicle but when they got close; its driver stepped on the gas and drove at them.
Police in turn fired one shot at the vehicle before it was able to speed away, Gibbs said.
A total of six police cruisers did pursue the vehicle along westbound Highway 407; however Gibbs said that the chase was eventually called off due to concerns over safety.
Then this morning police got a call indicating that the same vehicle had been involved in a gas-and-dash theft in the Meadowvale area of Mississauga.
Officers were not able to immediately locate the vehicle but it was found fully engulfed in flames underneath a bridge near Glen Erin Drive and Meadowvale Town Centre Circle at around 7:10 a.m., Gibbs said.
According to Gibbs, the white Durango had been previously stolen from a rental agency at Pearson International Airport.
Police are continuing to look for a single male suspect, who was last seen wearing a blue vest.
Gibbs said that it remains unclear why the vehicle was parked outside a police station in the first place.
“I can’t speculate as to why someone would do something like that,” Gibbs said. “That is part of the investigation at this point.”
According to Gibbs, police will be reviewing surveillance camera footage from the 22 Division parking lot in the hopes that it will help them identify the suspect. Forensic officers will also be examining the burned out vehicle for possible evidence.
