RCMP arrest suspect after traffic stop turns up stolen vehicle, gun

Hayden Stagg, 29, is shown in an undated, police supplied photo.

Mounties in Gypsumville have arrested a 29-year-old man after an attempted traffic stop led to the discovery of a stolen vehicle and the people inside fleeing police.

Police said officers were on patrol Monday afternoon in Pinaymootang First Nation, a community roughly 200 kilometres northeast of Dauphin, Man.

A RCMP release said officers tried to pull over a black Dodge Grand Caravan travelling on New Road South for a routine traffic stop.

However, the vehicle fled behind a nearby home before police said two men and a woman ran away, tossing a backpack as they went.

In the backpack, police said found a loaded sawed-off firearm and two large cans of bear mace.

A 41-year-old man in a wheelchair was a passenger in the van and not involved in the incident, along with another man’s identification.

Police then learned the vehicle was reported stolen the day before, alleging the driver was 29-year-old Hayden Stagg from Pinaymootang First Nation.

Police were asking for the public’s help finding Stagg, saying he is wanted on a slew of weapons charges.

On Friday, police said Stagg was arrested in Pinaymootang First Nation. The charges and allegations have not been tested in court.

Police have not yet identified the other man and woman.