Penticton carjacking crime spree suspect charged

ON September 19, 2019, Jesse William Shawcross, 36, allegedly flagged down two vehicles along Eastside Road, in Penticton, BC, and threatened to use a firearm. He then stole one of the victim’s vehicles. The victims, who were not physically harmed, called 911.

On September 24, Shawcross was believed to have stolen a truck from Oliver, BC. Officers in Penticton observed the stolen truck near the 1000-block of Eckhardt Avenue West. The Targeted Enforcement Unit (TEU), along with frontline officers converged into the area. Officers located the truck in a nearby parking lot.

Once officers entered into the parking lot, they confirmed the driver to be Shawcross. Shawcross, seeing officers moving in, attempted to evade them by crashing through the parking lot, damaging several parked cars and ultimately causing the truck to be inoperable. He then fled on foot, with officers giving chase across Eckhardt Avenue, where Shawcross resisted violently as several officers arrested him.

At the time of his arrest, RCMP were able to charge him with 11 offences, but were not in a position to lay additional charges directly linking him to the robberies. With Shawcross in custody, the General Investigation Section was able to successfully gather further evidence linking him to those crimes.

On December 30, an additional 13 charges were laid against Shawcross, which include two counts of robbery with a firearm.

“Shawcross has remained in custody following his arrest on September 24. However, necessary evidence linking him to the carjacking was only recently confirmed. Following a thorough investigation, our General Investigative Section submitted a detailed report to the BC Prosecution Service, recommending these additional charges against Shawcross,” said Penticton RCMP Constable James Grandy on Thursday.

Shawcross has been charged with the following:

• Theft of five vehicles
• Flight from police
• Dangerous operation of a motor vehicle
• Resisting arrest
• Assault with a weapon
• Break and enter
• Uttering threats
• Driving while prohibited
• Possessing a controlled substance
• Possession of stolen property
• Failing to comply with a probation order
• Robbery with a firearm (two counts)

“Our officers took the safety of our communities into paramount consideration while using all available resources, both investigative and physical, while searching for this accused. Right from the beginning, our members worked tirelessly to try and locate and bring this crime spree to a safe and accountable resolve. These events employed a number of RCMP resources including the RCMP helicopter, Police Dog Services, plainclothes and uniformed officers from several Detachments within the South Okanagan,” said Grandy.