Sask. RCMP searching for group that stole massive pile of reclaimed asphalt

A photo of reclaimed asphalt being collected for use in pothole patching. (Courtesy: Hotpatcher)

If you looked around a worksite considering what items may be a target for thieves, a multiple-ton pile of reclaimed asphalt might not register as a risk.

But the Saskatchewan RCMP says one group in west-central Saskatchewan gazed upon the rubble and saw opportunity.

In a news release on Tuesday, the RCMP said officers from the Rosetown detachment are on the hunt for people who stole several tons of reclaimed asphalt from a property near the hamlet of Stranraer.

Reclaimed asphalt has already been used as pavement but it gets smashed to smithereens and remixed to be used again, and several tons is enough to fill multiple large trucks, the RCMP says.

• Get the latest news from Saskatoon, sent directly to you: Download the CTV News App

Police believe the theft from the worksite, located about 170 kilometres west of Saskatoon, happened sometime between April 28 and May 9.

The RCMP are asking any witnesses, or anyone in the area who saw suspicious activity in that timeframe, to come forward.

On Friday, the RCMP warned of a group potentially offering fraudulent paving services in the nearby community of Rosetown, but it’s not yet known if the two incidents are connected.

In that case, police say a group approached a Rosetown business offering paving services for below market price, if they completed the work immediately. Sensing the urgency as a red flag, the business turned down the offer, police say.

For now, the RCMP is asking landowners to check their property to see if any materials have been dumped or store there, and anyone with a security camera is being asked to check the footage.

Anyone with information can call police or Crime Stoppers, the RCMP says.