Province seizes Kamloops duplex used as ‘bike chop shop’

A Kamloops home used as a bicycle “chop shop” was seized by the province and was sold in a court-ordered sale.

The property was used to store stolen items like vehicles and bikes, the BC Civil Forfeiture Office said as it argued the province should seize the house.

It only got a piece of the court-ordered sale, however, as lenders were already foreclosing on the property before the government agency got involved.

Sandra Lynn Newman bought the North Kamloops duplex in 2007, but it was her son, Matthew Newman, and his wife who lived there. Two years later, they were joint owners.

By July 2024, they were in default on the mortgage and CIBC demanded the roughly $231,000 be paid, according to its foreclosure filing. Once resolved last month, the court approved a $636,000 sale and Sandra got 90 per cent of it. The rest went to the Civil Forfeiture Office.

According to Civil Forfeiture court filings, the North Kamloops duplex was the centre of multiple stolen property investigations and “suspicious occurrences” beginning in 2022. It often housed stolen vehicles and was used as a “chop shop” for bikes before they were resold.

That year alone, police recorded 17 files connected to the house and the City had deemed it a “nuisance property” for excessive emergency calls.

Kamloops RCMP made note of the seizure in a recent report to city council, saying the Civil Forfeiture Office took action against a local prolific offender.

Though the Civil Forfeiture Office refused to comment when asked for details, Kamloops RCMP later referred iNFOnews.ca to the now-concluded court proceedings, showing the province launched its effort to take the house in September 2024.

The Civil Forfeiture Office doesn’t need to prove someone committed a crime beyond a reasonable doubt in order to seize property. Instead, it must show the court it’s more likely than not property, like a house or a vehicle, was either used for or obtained through illegal activity.

Matthew does, however, have a criminal record with several recent convictions for stolen property possession. His court history only dates back to 2022, according to court records. His wife and his mother, meanwhile, do not appear to have any convictions.

The Newmans didn’t challenge the seizure in court, so the Civil Forfeiture Office won through a default judgement, awarded before the house was sold.