5 RCMP cruisers destroyed in trackhoe rampage, Alberta man charged

A stolen trackhoe rampage left a business fence and five RCMP cruisers destroyed, and now a suspect accused of previously threatening police is facing even more charges.

It all went down on Saturday night in the northeastern Alberta community of Bonnyville, located about 200 km northeast of Edmonton.

Just before 7 p.m., RCMP said a trackhoe, also known as an excavator, was stolen from a local business and driven through the company’s fence, causing significant damage.

RCMP said the suspect then headed to the local police detachment, picking up boulders along the way.

The piece of heavy construction machinery was then driven into the the parking lot of the Bonnyville RCMP detachment.

“(They) then dumped several boulders in front of the prisoner bay of the detachment, believed to be an attempt to delay officer’s ability to respond to calls,” RCMP said in an update Monday.

The suspect drove the trackhoe into five unoccupied parked RCMP vehicles, causing extensive damage and leaving them undriveable.

The suspect then ran away from the detachment on foot, police sad.

RCMP were called in help to track him down, including a police dog team from St. Paul, a drone operator from Cold Lake RCMP, officers from Elk Point and other surrounding areas in eastern Alberta. Other officers from surrounding communities also responded to ensure there was ongoing police service in Bonnyville available for other calls,

RCMP from K Division in Edmonton coordinated the search and deployment of resources. An area was contained and the teams began searching the area for the suspect.

A short time later, RCMP said a police dog namedChase and their handler found the suspect hiding in a grove of trees just northwest of the detachment.

“During his arrest, the suspect resisted and fought officers, and as a result, he was bitten by PDS Chase. Once in custody, he was taken to a local hospital to get treated for minor injuries and was released,” RCMP said.

David Merko, 62, from Bonnyville was charged with 13 criminal code offences:

• Dangerous driving
• Six counts of mischief over $5,000
• Break and enter
• PSP over $5000
• Theft over $5000
• Two counts of obstruct/resist peace officer
• Uttering threats

RCMP  said the charge of uttering threats is a result of an April 17th incident, in which Merko allegelly called police dispatch in Saskatchewan and threatened to kill RCMP officers.

Photos of the excavator incident quickly spread online, being picked up around the world.

RCMP acknowledged it has garnered a lot of attention on social media.

“Unfortunately, many of the comments are negative, some of which are threatening towards RCMP to the point of expressing disappointment that officers were not injured or killed during the incident,” Bonnyville RCMP detachment commander Staff Sgt. Sarah Parke said on Monday.

“All RCMP officers come to work, day in and day out, to protect and serve their community.

“It is extremely disheartening to see these types of comments made.”

Alberta RCMP said it has seen a steady increase in violence towards police in recent years.

Most recent statistics indicate that on average, there are 2.3 incidents of violence occurring every day towards Alberta RCMP officers.

In 2023, 70 Alberta officers were injured as a result of use of force incidents, police said. No one was injured during the Bonnyville incident.