Rumble Bee: The story behind a stolen pickup that crashed into a credit union
When Jay Holmes bought his brand new yellow 2019 Dodge Ram pickup a month ago, he knew exactly what he was going to name it.
Rumble Bee.
"It has something to do with the colour and Bumblebee from Transformers," said his wife, Ashley Holmes.
The Moncton couple drove their truck everywhere: to the Champlain mall, Glad Tidings Church, to Halifax.
On Wednesday morning, Rumble Bee disappeared.
The truck was stolen in the early hours of the morning. By Wednesday night, it had rammed into a credit union on Hughes Street in Fredericton — 180 kilometres away.
The Holmeses had already been the victims of a break-in at their house on Tuesday. Someone smashed their backdoor window and stole an Xbox One and a MacBook Pro.
What the couple didn't notice at the time was the missing truck key that typically hangs off a coat rack at the backdoor for safekeeping.
'It's like a bad movie'
The next morning, they planned to shop around for a new door for their home.
Instead, they were faced with a second theft. Rumble Bee was missing from their driveway.
"It's like a bad movie," Ashley said.
The couple immediately called police and turned to Facebook, pleading for any information about their truck.
Nearly 12 hours later, a friend shared a photo with Jay Holmes. It was of the yellow truck that had slammed into the credit union in Fredericton.
When her husband saw the photo, he laughed.
"You're just like, 'How does this happen?"
The truck also features a system that notifies the owner when something is wrong with the vehicle, such as the vehicle needs an oil change.
In this case, the couple received an email that night that the truck's tires were blown and the engine had been destroyed.
Truck 'embedded' in bank
After the crash, a 30-year-old man was arrested.
Platoon captain Glenn Sullivan of the Fredericton Fire Department said the front half of the truck was "embedded" in the side of the Progressive Credit Union on Hughes Street on the city's north side.
The crash damaged some washrooms and a couple of other rooms in the building.
The crash happened shortly before 10:30 p.m.
But a half-hour earlier, police had located the vehicle in the Fulton Heights area of Fredericton shortly, the release said.
Driver fled on 'walking trail'
The driver refused to stop for police, using a local walking trail as "an escape route." As a result, police said, they ended their pursuit because of concerns about public safety.
But several minutes later they received a report that the suspect had collided with another vehicle on nearby Cliffe Street, where a male driver suffered minor injuries.
A short time later, the truck crashed into the credit union.
After the driver of the pickup truck was arrested, police said he was taken to the Dr. Everett Chalmers Regional Hospital with undetermined injuries.
Police are investigating the cause of the crash.
Now what?
Holmes said she's grateful no one was seriously hurt in either crash — and that the couple were covered under insurance.
"We know that things are things and can be replaced."
The couple plan to buy another truck later this week.
"And it will be in the garage."
