Many neighbours woke up Saturday, March 11th to signs of trespassing and theft in the neighbourhood. Tracks in the snow showed that an individual hopped over fences in backyards. A few sheds were broken into but multiple sources said that nothing appeared to be stolen.
Unfortunately, the individual entered one house on Bow Meadows Drive through the backdoor. The individual entered the house through the back, sliding patio door. He searched through drawers in the kitchen and home office on the main floor. Two wallets, three older cell phones, a computer hard drive and a stack of gift cards were taken. The individual also used the homeowners’ car keys to search through vehicles and the garage. Signs of rummaging were found in the basement. The individual took autographed sports memorabilia from home. The homeowners note that the individual was likely on foot as only pocket-sized items were taken. Other larger valuable items were left untouched.
Three adults and two children were home asleep during the intrusion as well as a small elderly dog. No one woke up during the theft and there was no confrontation.
The individual appeared to leave the house through the back garage door and successfully avoided the doorbell camera by the front door. All three exterior doors to the home were found left open in the morning.
A neighbour reported seeing a thin male wearing all black with his face covered with a balaclava walking down the street at 1:30 am March 11th. This is thought to be the suspect. If anyone has security footage of this individual please be in touch with the RCMP.
RCMP has been notified of the events. Please be vigilant in the community and report any discarded items that have been found—specifically, a small black Seagate computer hard drive.
How can you help? Check any outdoor garbage bins and along paths for items that may have been discarded. Notify the police if you see anyone suspicious in the neighbourhood, particularly at night hours.
RCMP Non-Emergency contact info:
403.851.8000
kcochrane@rcmp-grc.gc.ca
How can you protect yourself and your home?
- Install motion sensor lights in front and back yards. Motion sensor lights may surprise potential thieves. Check here on Amazon for some options.
- Install cameras (doorbell cameras). Check here on Amazon or here.
- Install deadbolt locks and upgrade patio/sliding glass door locks. Check here for sliding door security bars.
- Opportunistic criminals commonly target unlocked cars. Don’t leave anything valuable in your car and always lock the doors.
- Get a dog. Dogs are exceptional deterrents to theft. Let your dog be seen — and heard. A thief who knows there’s a dog in the house may pick another target.
- Add a generic security sign to your yard or stickers to your door. It may not fool a burglar, but he may think twice about hitting your home.
- Create open spaces in your landscaping and keep bushes trimmed so burglars have fewer places to hide. If you’re landscaping, plant thorny bushes such as roses in vulnerable areas.