On Saturday, Aug. 9, at 12:09 a.m, Clearwater RCMP responded to a report of a possible impaired driver who had crashed his vehicle in the ditch south of Avola on Highway 5.
Police attended the scene and immediately noticed a small fire near the fog line of the highway.
Police quickly extinguished the flames, revealing a pile of books, clothing and, of course, potatoes.
The driver had left the scene and hitchhiked to Blue River, where he advised police of the incident.
Police could not locate the male after the incident.
Later that same morning, Barriere RCMP investigated a theft from a local resident’s shed and discovered that the male driver from the Avola incident was now roaming south of Barriere.
Barriere RCMP eventually apprehended this individual under the Mental Health Act, and the male was then transported to Kamloops.