Comox Valley residents report theft ring targeting trucks, heavy equipment
Comox, B.C., business owner John Watt has been distracted from his regular duties lately as he tries to replace a truck and thousands of dollars in new ski equipment stolen in late January from Mount Washington.
The pickup was taken when his son parked it during a ski trip. “He parked it at about midnight and at eight o’clock the next morning went to get his ski gear out of it and it was gone,” Watt says.
The pickup was found burned the next morning on a remote Nanaimo-area road. “[They] probably didn’t want fingerprints on the truck," Watt says.
Watt says the pickup was used for his landscaping business and was equipped with an external fuel tank and a snow plow on the front.
He says the investigating RCMP officer told him his truck was one of a handful stolen off the mountain recently.
STOLEN TOOLS
Alpine Services, which does snow removal on the mountain and transports luggage to chalets, had their office full of tools cleaned out a week ago, according to employee Richard Meads.
“Within a period of an hour they had come in and cleaned out the shop – well over $5,000 worth of tools, including Milwaukee impact wrenches, air impact wrenches, high-end torque wrenches, wireless headphones for our transport department,” Meads says.
He says the thieves were also involved in the theft of several catalytic converters from vehicles parked in the same parking lot where their office is located.
Meads says the thefts hit their small operation hard, and he believes the culprits were professionals. Much of the stolen equipment has already been spotted being sold online, he said.
“We found a lot of our stuff on [Facebook Marketplace in] Vancouver within hours," Meads says. "We maybe think that they’re from Vancouver and definitely pros… they know what they’re doing, they’re quick and organized."
STOLEN ITEM BEING SOLD IN KAMLOOPS
Jake Shepherd can relate to seeing his stolen item being resold online. He was forwarded a listing for his Bobcat T-250 track loader.
“It was listed for sale and they had sent this guy a picture," Shepherd says. "He forwarded that picture on to me."
The $35,000 unit was stolen from his Mount Washington facility and was being sold in Kamloops.
“The pickup that towed it was found abandoned near that same area in Kamloops," he says.
Watt believes his landscaping business has lost nearly $300,000 worth of equipment to thieves over the years despite his efforts to keep everything secure.
He cautions members of the public against purchasing items at reduced prices that they should know have been stolen.
He also knows police are doing what they can but would like to see stiffer penalties involved.
“It’s not going to stop until we catch the people and put them in jail and actually leave them in jail, not do the revolving door,” Watt says.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.