VANCOUVER -- Mounties in Pitt Meadows say they believe a local family's vehicle was targeted because it happens to be registered in Washington state.

The vehicle's tires were slashed around 4:45 p.m. on Monday while the family was out for a walk in the 17000 block of Rannie Road, Ridge Meadows RCMP said in a news release Tuesday.

The area where the incident occurred is a rural one near the Pitt Addington Marsh, according to Google Maps.

Police said the family is Canadian and lives locally, but they have a vehicle with Washington licence plates.

While the rest of the family went for a walk, a 12-year-old daughter remained in the vehicle, police said.

Soon after the walk began, a man approached the car, police said. He yelled expletives and slashed the tires on the vehicle's driver's side before leaving the area in his own vehicle, according to police.

"It is believed the Washington plates are what triggered the inappropriate response and alleged vandalism from the unknown man," RCMP said in their release.

They describe the suspect as 5'8" tall, with a large build, brown hair and a beard. He was wearing a white and blue jacket, and he drove away in a beige sedan with a dent on the passenger side door, police said.

"There are a number of reasons why people in Canada can legally have out-of-province plates on their car," said Ridge Meadows RCMP spokesperson Const. Julie Klaussner in the release.

"While this vehicle did have Washington plates, these victims are authorized to be in Canada and are Canadian citizens. It is important not to draw conclusions based on what we think we know and, in this case, a young girl has been traumatized and a car has been vandalized."

Anyone who knows the identity of the suspect or has information about him should call Ridge Meadows RCMP at 604-463-6251 and reference file number 2021-3150, police said.