The driver caught on video crashing into several parked cars at a Campbell River car dealership has turned herself in, police said Wednesday.
Coastline Mazda shared surveillance video Tuesday of a Ford Explorer sideswiping two cars in the dealership’s parking lot around 7:30 p.m. Monday.
Sales manager Sanjay Sharma said the vehicle did even more damage off camera.
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“The driver came onto the property, hit a couple vehicles, went to the end of the lot and did a three-point turn, hit another car there and then came back to leave the lot and hit a few of the new vehicles as well,” he said.
“In all my time in the auto industry, I’ve never seen anything like that. Extremely bizarre.”
Sharma said the damages to at least five cars on the lot, including a service vehicle, are estimated to be well over $10,000. The dealership will likely be on the hook for those costs, he added.
The dealership posted the video to Facebook and offered a $1,000 reward to anyone with information that led to an arrest. The video was then shared more than 650 times and earned roughly 40,000 views.
Campbell River RCMP Staff Sgt. Troy Beauregard said the video played a role in the suspect, a 55-year-old woman, turning herself in Tuesday night.
“The good quality of the video was extremely helpful to our investigators, and we got several tips from the public as a result,” Beauregard said. “We have since located the suspect vehicle and spoken with the driver after she turned herself in.”
RCMP will now recommend a variety of charges to Crown Counsel, Beauregard said, including failure to stay at the scene of a crash and dangerous driving.
He added alcohol “likely” played a factor in the crash, but could not speak to the reasons why the suspect was on the lot in the first place.
Sharma said the dealership is hopeful the damages are taken care of, and is thankful to everyone who shared the video and helped inspire the suspect to come forward.
“We really want to thank the community for their support,” he said. “To see social media used in a positive way was really great for us.”
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