West Vancouver break-in linked to police chase, shotgun nets jail term

A man who took a loaded shotgun to a break-in at a British Properties home, then hid in a closet when police interrupted his burglary, has been sentenced to two years in jail.

Adam Douglas Zinck, 38, was handed the sentence Monday (Dec. 13) in North Vancouver provincial court for the West Vancouver break-in in the 500 block of Craigmohr Drive in February 2020, plus other property crimes in Surrey that include possession of a stolen vehicle and being caught by police in possession of mail and cheques that didn’t belong to him.

At a sentencing hearing Dec. 9, Crown counsel Kevin Masse described how Zinck and a co-accused, Alexander James Eaton, had come to West Vancouver 10 days earlier to case the neighbourhood, where many homes were known to be unoccupied.

On Feb. 8, 2020, the pair and a woman companion drove to the British Properties, with a loaded Remington 870 shotgun Zinck had brought.

Police had earlier been alerted to trouble by a report of an attempted break-in connected with the stolen Tacoma pickup truck, and smashed vehicle windows in the area.

Police eventually spotted the truck, which had been stolen from a home in Surrey the previous day, outside of the home on Craigmohr Drive.

One officer tried to box in the Tacoma with his police car, said Masse. But instead of surrendering, Eaton drove forward, ramming the police car before making a getaway.

Meanwhile, the interior of the home showed signs of being rummaged, said Masse. A TV, DVD player and VCR had been pulled off their stand, and electronics including an iPad had been put in bags, along with bottles of alcohol.

A police dog found Zinck hiding in a closet inside the house, and bit him.

He was taken to Lions Gate Hospital for stitches.

Meanwhile, outside the residence, Eaton fled south in the truck, leading police on a chase across the North Shore. At one point the loaded shotgun was thrown from the truck, said Masse.

Eventually the truck ran over a police spike belt at Capilano Bridge, slowing it down. Eaton was arrested a short time later in Central Lonsdale.

Police recovered the shotgun from the side of the highway, still loaded.

In handing down her sentence to Zinck, Judge Nancy Adams said the break-in was particularly serious, because Zinck had given some earlier thought to the break-in and brought a loaded gun with him.

Zinck’s lawyer said his client was using drugs at the time, including crystal meth, GHB and marijuana, but is now drug free.

“I can honestly say this is not the life that I want to lead anymore...” Zinck told the judge. “I've made a ton of bad decisions in the last couple of years."

Zinck earlier told the author of the pre-sentence report he had just gone into the vacant house to sleep. But Adams didn’t believe him, saying it was clear he went to the house to commit theft to support his drug habit.

She sentenced Zinck to two years for his crimes, including the additional property offences in Surrey and Langley, but gave him credit for time already spent in custody, resulting in a sentence of six more months in jail.

At an earlier sentencing in Surrey provincial court, Eaton, 29, was sentenced to three and a half years in jail, including two and a half years for the West Vancouver dangerous driving and flight from police, plus additional time for weapons and property crimes in Surrey. He was given credit for time served, resulting in a remaining sentence of approximately two years and 10 months.

A time-limited publication ban prevented details of Eaton’s sentencing being made public until September.