Stupidity, chance and a little luck netted the cops a hit-and-run suspect Monday, May 5th.

A police officer attended a scene on Richter Street when a man complained his two parked vehicles had been hit sometime during the night.

As the two were talking the man noticed a car drive by with its wheel about to fall off. “The complainant urged the police officer to go and deal with that vehicle as it was an immediate safety concern,” says Constable, Julie Rattee. “He insisted his own complaint could wait.”

The car was located two blocks away and flagged to the road-side. “The Officer noted that this vehicle had extensive front end damage which was very consistent with the damage caused to the complainant's two vehicles,” says Rattee. “The paint transfer on the suspect vehicle was also consistent with the two damaged vehicles.”

A discussion with the driver and further eye-witness statements confirmed that this was likely the car that had done the damage and that the driver had likely been behind the wheel at the time.

Things went from bad-to-worse for the suspect when he admitted he didn't have a driver's license.

“The 49-year-old Kelowna man driving the suspect vehicle did not have a valid driver's license and was a Vehicle Impound Candidate,” Rattee says. “He was subsequently charged under the Motor Vehicle Act and his truck was impounded for thirty days.”

The police credit the Richter Street resident with the outcome and say help from the public often helps to solve crimes and keep neighborhoods safe.