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Search on for suspect for truck thefts

Two people have been charged and RCMP are on the lookout for one other following Sunday's chase that ended with an allegedly stolen pickup truck sliding into a ditch with the pursuing police vehicle following close behind.

Two people have been charged and RCMP are on the lookout for one other following Sunday's chase that ended with an allegedly stolen pickup truck sliding into a ditch with the pursuing police vehicle following close behind.

Jonathan Kyle Relkey, 22, and Ashley Susan Lynn Sampson, 19, have both been charged with two counts of possession of stolen property over $5,000. Relkey was also charged with possession of a break-in instrument and, from a separate alleged incident, possession of stolen property over $5,000.

Police are also continuing to seek Chad Patrick Poitras, 27. He is described as Caucasian, 178 cm (five-feet-eight-inches) tall, weighing 82 kg (180 lbs) with short brown hair, brown eyes, a scar on the left side of his mouth and a tattoo of a scorpion on his neck.

The charges are in relation to two Ford F-350 pickup trucks, one reported stolen from a parking lot on Central St. at about 2 a.m. Saturday morning, and the other from an Isle Pierre property on Sunday morning.

Police said a Prince George RCMP member called at 9:40 a.m. on Sunday to the scene of the reported Isle Pierre robbery noticed a brown F-350, that matched the description from the Central Street theft, following a white one on Highway 16 believed taken from the Isle Pierre property.

The member turned around and the white F-350 was found travelling on Bear Road towards the city but when he activated his siren, the driver began passing unsafely and ran a stop sign at Westgate Boulevard, according to police.

Seconds later, the driver missed the corner at Marleau Road and slid into the ditch and the police vehicle slid into the pickup. Sampson was taken to hospital with minor injuries and later released, according to RCMP.

Upon apprehending Relkey, who police say was the driver, and Sampson, police said several items alleged to have been stolen from the same property from where the truck was taken were found in the vehicle's box - two gas heaters, two exhaust pipes, and a water pump, hydraulic jack and heat booster.

Both Relkey and Poitras are familiar faces to RCMP and the courts.

In September 2010, Relkey was sentenced to two years in jail for two counts of possession of stolen property over $5,000. Relkey's record also includes a count of extortion.

Poitras, meanwhile, was scheduled to appear in court this week on charges of driving while disqualified and possessing a weapon for a dangerous purpose, from separate incidents, and is also facing a charge of killing or injuring an animal. None of those allegations have yet been proven in court.

In June 2011, Poitras was sentenced to 112 days in jail for willfully resisting a peace officer, 90 days for driving while disqualified and to 40 days and three years probation for dangerous driving.

Poitras also has an extensive criminal record from convictions in Surrey, Port Coquitlam and Abbotsford.

Sampson has no criminal record.

Anyone with information on Poitras' location is asked to contact RCMP at (250) 561-3300 or if they wish to remain anonymous contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477). Crime Stoppers can also be accessed online at www.pgcrimestoppers.bc.ca or Text-A-Tip to CRIMES (274637) using keyword "pgtips."