Two people suspected of being Nanaimo’s “porch pirates” could end up being thrown in the brig following their arrest on the weekend.
Nanaimo RCMP arrested a 33-year-old man and and 31-year-old woman after several parcels were stolen from doorsteps of homes in the city.
According to an RCMP press release, the man and woman were arrested when their vehicle was stopped by police on Milton Street on Sunday at about 3 p.m., a few days after investigators received two reports within an hour Dec. 9 of stolen parcels from Latimer Road and Howard Avenue. Police were also able to connect the suspects to a parcel theft from a home on Rosstown Road a month earlier.
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Police gathered evidence from home security footage that recorded all three thefts, intelligence gathered by investigators and tips from the public to identify the suspects who are both from Nanaimo.
Officers searched the vehicle, which was registered to the male suspect, and didn’t find any parcels, but did find a number of pieces of mail, suspected of being stolen, that were seized. A search allegedly turned up a small amount of illegal drugs and a baton. Charges are pending for possession of the drugs and baton. The man was arrested on suspicion of three counts of theft under $5,000 and was also served a five-month driving prohibition for driving with a suspended licence.
The woman, who is of no fixed address, was arrested on suspicion of two counts of theft under $5,000.
Both suspects were released the day of their arrests and are scheduled to appear in provincial court in Nanaimo in March.
“This was an excellent, aggressive investigation which utilized various means to gather pertinent information,” said Const. Gary O’Brien, Nanaimo RCMP spokesman. “The public and media were very helpful as a number of tips were received that helped move the investigation along.”
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