Sex assault suspect surrenders

A man wanted in connection with an alleged sexual assault of a Red Deer woman in her 70s has turned himself in to police.

RCMP say the 25-year-old suspect has been remanded in custody on charges of aggravated sexual assault, forcible confinement and robbery.

Police say the alleged victim was sexually and physically assaulted by a man on July 29 as she was walking through a city wooded area.

She was able to walk to a nearby store for help.

Mounties have said they could not immediately determine if the assault was a random or targeted attack.

Jesse Peter Toews of Red Deer will appear in court Aug. 31.

Takedown nets drugs, cash

A male motorist was arrested after police stopped a vehicle on Hwy 2 north of Red Deer and seized drugs and cash.

Acting on a tip, Red Deer City RCMP stopped a sports utility vehicle near the Blackfalds overpass at about 5:45 p.m. Thursday. A search of the vehicle yielded a small quantity of methamphetamines, cocaine and cash.

The driver, who is not from Red Deer, was arrested and charged with two counts of drug possession for the purpose of trafficking and possessing proceeds of crime.

Police declined to identify the man.

Hunt on for missing inmate

Police are searching for an inmate who walked away from Bowden Institution on Thursday night.

The escapee, Damien Justin Swords, was serving time for a property-related offence when he walked away from Bowden’s dormitory-style Annex residences at about 11 p.m.

Swords is an Inuit male who is 178 cm tall, weighs 86 kg, and has short black hair, and brown eyes with glasses. He was last seen wearing blue jeans and a white T-shirt, and may also be wearing a dark coloured jacket.

Anyone with information about the escapee is asked to contact police.

Man ordered to stand trial

A Red Deer man was ordered to stand trial for second-degree murder by a provincial court judge Friday.

Larry Allen Scott, 53, of Red Deer had been charged with first-degree murder and being an accessory after the fact in connection with the death of Sheldon Mark Hiller, of Red Deer, whose body was found in a ditch near Raven in April 2007.

After a preliminary hearing wrapped up in Red Deer provincial court Friday, Judge David Plosz ordered a trial on the reduced murder charge and the accessory charge. A trial date is expected to be set Oct. 5.

Evidence presented at the preliminary hearing can not be revealed because of a publication ban. A preliminary hearing is held to determine if there is enough evidence to warrant a Court of Queen’s Bench trial.

Scott was one of two men who had been charged with first-degree murder in the death of Hiller.

The other man, Brent William Crouse, 44, of Calgary, has also been charged with being an accessory after the fact. His preliminary hearing is set to run from March 29 to April 1.

Charles Richard Beckett, 48, was sentenced to two years in jail, satisfied by time served, after pleading guilty to accessory after the fact to murder last April. Beckett, of Red Deer, had been in jail for a year.

New traffic light installed

A new set of traffic lights has been installed at 32 Street and 55 Avenue. On Tuesday and Wednesday, yellow and red lights will flash at this intersection to alert motorists of the new signals.

Starting on Thursday, the lights will be fully operational.

Drivers approaching a flashing yellow signal may proceed through the intersection with caution.

Drivers approaching a flashing red signal must stop, observe the right of way and proceed when it is safe to do so.