Surveillance video responsible for conviction of Summerland community mailbox thief

PENTICTON – A Kamloops man will serve two months in jail after he was caught stealing mail from a Summerland community mailbox last summer.

Julian Alexander Hoekstra, 43, pleaded guilty to mail theft and breach in Penticton court today, Feb.16, after he was identified in video surveillance from last August.

Crown prosecutor Kurt Froehlich told court Summerland RCMP were notified of mail theft from a Summerland community mailbox on June 4, 2017.

Canada Post had video cameras installed in the community mailbox’s parcel compartment following the theft, and on Aug.11 the camera was retrieved and the video footage examined.

The footage revealed a man and a woman accessing the mailbox, removing items, looking around in the box and leaving. It was noted the box had also been subject to an unauthorized entry, as the locking mechanism had been forced.

Hoekstra was identified as the man in the video.

Police also discovered Hoekstra was in breach of a probation curfew order as the incident occurred at 3 a.m.

Defence lawyer Jordan Watt said his client had a limited criminal history who had served some “not insignificant sentences” nonetheless, who also struggled with substance abuse from time to time. His client intended to return to Kamloops upon his release, where he was going to seek treatment for his issues.

It was also noted Hoekstra would be attending court pertaining to other matters in Kelowna after serving this sentence.

Both Crown and defense proposed a sentence of 60 days in jail for the mailbox theft and 14 days, to run concurrent, for breaching conditions and Judge Michelle Daneliuk agreed to the joint submission.

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