TORONTO — The great Canadian candy caper ended in a helicopter bust of the alleged culprits.
Police north of Toronto used a helicopter and thermal imaging to catch the alleged thieves after someone broke into a store at Canada's Wonderland late Saturday and stole some treats.
"Police were called by Canada's Wonderland security, who had spotted three people within the closed park," York regional police said in a release on Tuesday. "The males were seen dressed in dark clothing, with their faces covered, entering one of the stores on the property and stealing candy."
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The teens then left the store, and disappeared in the amusement park, police said.
The police helicopter "Air2" was deployed, arriving on the scene shortly after. Using a special infra-red camera, officers located the suspects hiding under a tree. Officers aboard the chopper directed members of the canine unit on the ground to the area.
"OK, I've got some contacts, they're at the south end of the park," one officer can be heard saying. "I've got two, maybe three people huddled down underneath a tree."
The night-time video shows the accused as bright white in the otherwise grey dark as four officers and the dog track them down.
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With the dog leading the way, police were able to locate the suspects and take them into custody without further incident.
"There's three and they're all surrendering," the officer aboard the chopper tells dispatch.
Two of the arrested teens were aged 16 years old and the third was 15, police said. All were from Vaughan, Ont.
"The youths were co-operative with police and were remorseful for their actions," the statement said. "They were each released to the custody of their parents."
Police released a 65-second video of incident as captured by the chopper "as a deterrent to anyone that is considering trespassing onto private property."
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