Stolen excavator joyride along I-5 in Redding ends in damage to gas station, arrest
Police arrested a man last week after he allegedly drove a stolen construction excavator into a light pole and caused extensive damage while driving through two gas stations just off Interstate 5 in Redding.
Remore Allen Smith, 37, of North Carolina faces charges of vehicle theft, resisting arrest and hit-and-run after authorities say he stole the heavy machinery from an I-5 on-ramp at about 3:15 a.m. Friday.
Smith allegedly drove the excavator several hundred feet on Churn Creek Road, striking a light pole and traveling through a Chevron gas station and then an Arco AM/PM station, the Redding Police Department said in a news release. Smith allegedly drove the excavator into an overhang at the Arco station, causing “extensive damage,” the news release said.
Witnesses reportedly talked Smith out of driving the excavator through the store itself, police said.
Arriving officers took Smith into custody after a brief struggle, the release said. He was arrested and booked into the Shasta County jail.
