The manager of a Sidney jewelery store continues to assess the damage following a theft.
Lisa Knickerbocker, who had earlier spoken of a “significant theft” in a television interview, said she is still not sure how much merchandise the thieves stole, but pegs the current value at “thousands and thousands” of dollars.
While the business has experienced minor shoplifting during its seven years of existence, this is the first time it became the victim of a break-and-enter, said Knickerbocker, adding later that she thought that she was prepared for something like this recent break-in in planning to take additional safety measures.
Cpl. Carrie Harding said the break-in, in the 2500-block of Beacon Avenue, was discovered Saturday morning when an alert citizen noticed broken front glass.
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Knickerbocker later called the incident “very destructive” on social media in speaking of an “enormous mess of shattered glass and stolen items.”
Staff-Sgt. Wayne Conley, detachment commander of Sidney/North Saanich RCMP, said these “types of incident” are rare in Sidney, but promised a thorough investigation. “These investigations are taken seriously,” he said. “Our detachment frontline members are working with both our [general investigation section] and our crime analyst on this incident.”
When asked whether this most recent incident speaks to a rash of break-and-enters, Harding said “this is the only one that we’ve had in the downtown core in over a couple of months.”
Looking at the broader picture, the public heard earlier this year that crimes in the category of property crimes dropped 42 per cent compared to the same period of 2019. Looking specifically at the category of commercial break-and-enters, they dropped by 90 per cent during the months of April, May and June of 2020 compared to the same period in 2019.
This development has come after police working with the Sidney Business Improvement Area Society have stepped up efforts to combat various kinds of property crimes in recent years.
Morgan Shaw, executive directorof the Sidney Business Improvement Area (BIA) Society, said this incident underscores the importance of making sure that security systems are up-to-date and checked frequently to make sure they operate properly. Downtown businesses should also stay in touch with each other in informing each other about suspicious activities and individuals, so that the BIA can circulate that information.
“We can definitely have more power in numbers if we know about these kinds of situation,” she said.
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