Police using bait packages to nab porch pirates in B.C. city
Bait packages are being strategically placed on doorsteps across New Westminster, B.C., in an effort to catch and deter so-called porch pirates.
The boxes and envelopes come in many different sizes and weights, and are designed to look genuine, so crooks can’t tell them apart from the real thing.
“It could be a bubble mailer, it could be an envelope, it could be a big cardboard box,” warned Sgt. Justine Thom of the New Westminster Police Department.
Authorities can’t reveal much about how it works, but tell CTV News the packages are equipped with technology that will help them track down and identify thieves.
“The holiday season is actually one of my favourite times of the year, and it’s actually truly devastating to think about someone ordering things online, having that wonderful feeling of giftgiving and spreading love and joy, and having somebody ruin that,” said Thom.
Other cities in North America that have deployed similar stings use GPS technology to pinpoint where mail crooks have fled with “great success.”
Thom sounded confident New Westminster’s bait program will be just as effective.
“We’re going to identify you, and we’re going to arrest you,” she said as a warning to potential crooks.
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