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Man sentenced for tailgate thefts in Fraser Valley

David Ahner was arrested in Abbotsford in early June
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A man charged stealing tailgates from three Ford trucks in Abbotsford and Langley. (Truck Hardware/Flickr)

A man who was charged with three tailgate thefts in Langley and Abbotsford has been sentenced to 3.5 months in jail.

David Michael Ahner, 38, also received 18 months’ probation during his sentencing on July 12 in Abbotsford provincial court.

The Abbotsford Police Department (APD) announced in early June that Ahner was facing three charges of theft over $5,000 – two in Langley and one in Abbotsford – as well as one charge of driving while disqualified in Abbotsford.

He pleaded guilty to the two Langley thefts, and the other two charges were stayed.

At the time of his arrest, the APD said police had received reports of more than 80 stolen tailgates in Abbotsford, Mission, Chilliwack and Langley.

Most of the thefts involved trucks from the model years 2008 to 2016. Ahner’s charges all related to tailgates stolen from Ford F-350s.

Police said the cost of replacing a tailgate can be as high as $10,000, and most of the stolen ones would have been resold.

Ahner was also sentenced on July 12 to a 60-day jail term for operating a motor vehicle while disqualified in Mission.

He also faced two counts of possession of stolen property – one in Abbotsford and one in Langley – as well as break-and-enter in Langley, all from August 2016, but two of those charges were stayed on July 12.

Ahner was sentenced to one day in prison and one year of probation on the Abbotsford offence.

According to the provincial court database, Ahner has an extensive criminal record dating back to the year 2000.

He has numerous prior convictions for offences such as theft, breaching his probation, drug possession, impaired driving, being unlawfully at large and uttering threats.



Vikki Hopes

About the Author: Vikki Hopes

I have been a journalist for almost 40 years, and have been at the Abbotsford News since 1991.
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