Thieves take a bite out of several Vernon businesses

BIZARRE ASSORTMENT OF STOLEN ITEMS FROM ACROSS NORTH OKANAGAN

VERNON – Thieves have been doing brisk business in the North Okanagan recently as they pillaged business after business in recent days.

RCMP spokesperson Const. Jocelyn Noseworthy says there doesn’t appear to be any reason for the spike other than it just happens sometimes.

"It’s not unusual,” she says. "We do get (spikes) but for whatever reason this week seems to be a bit of an increase.”

Topping the list is an expensive raid of MRS Management on Commonage Road. Thieves cut open the gates to the business sometime overnight of Sept. 25 to 26. Noseworthy says it appears they backed up a dually truck and trailer suggesting they knew what they would find: A Volvo skid steer/backhoe and a Volvo mower, worth a total of $90,000.

That same night, the compound for Priest Valley Arena on 35 Avenue was broken into and they stole — of all things — two to three sheets of hockey arena glass and 30 to 40 aluminum supports.

Thieves also broke into Latitude Marine on 25 Avenue on Sept. 24, though it's not clear if anything was stolen. Police believe it was the same people responsible for breaking into LB Chapman Construction, also on 25 Avenue, between Sept. 22 and 24. There they broke into two travel trailers and stole an ‘unknown quantity’ of items.

Earlier in the week, police found a rather odd theft at the intersection of Okanagan Landing Road and Cummins Road between Sept. 18 and 19. Thieves made off with two 14-foot corrugated culverts. They weigh more than 500 pounds each and are worth roughly $1,200.

Also on Sept. 19, someone made an early morning withdrawal from the compound of B.C. Forestry on Reservoir Road in Coldstream. They stole a 2006 Ford F-250 truck and used it to steal gasoline and mechanical equipment including chainsaws, a fire pump, maps, GPS system and a radio. The truck has since been recovered in Kelowna.

If you can help police find any of these items or know the people involved, call Vernon RCMP at 250-545-7171 or CrimeStoppers at 1-800-222-8477.

To contact the reporter for this story, email Charlotte Helston at chelston@infonews.ca or call 250-309-5230. To contact the editor, email mjones@infonews.ca or call 250-718-2724.