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Stolen packages has Trail police warning of ‘porch pirates’

To avoid front porch theft ask someone to accept the package if they are home during the day
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As Christmas nears and online shopping surges both near and far, beware the package pilferer. Photo: Element5-Digital/Unsplash

As Christmas nears and online shopping surges both near and far, beware the package pilferer.

Known to some as the “porch pirate,” to others simply as a thief, the Trail RCMP is reminding locals to think ahead and avoid becoming a victim of this opportunistic petty crime.

This cautionary story follows a call to Trail police the night of Friday, Nov. 25.

That’s when a frontline RCMP officer received a report about a theft of two packages from the front door of a residence in the 3000-block of Laburnum Avenue, in Trail. Incidentally, the Trail detachment is located nearby, in the 3600-block of Laburnum Drive.

“Unfortunately, it is the time of year that package theft spikes due to an increase in holiday deliveries,” says Sgt. Mike Wicentowich.

To protect yourself from becoming a victim, Wicentowich offers the following tips:

• Ship your package to a secure location like your work;

• Ask your friends, family, or neighbour to accept the package if they are home during the day;

• Require a signature to accept delivery;

• Have it delivered to a secure mailbox or facility;

• Pick it up from the courier’s location directly;

• Have a secure lockbox in which the courier can locked your package securely inside;

• Put up a security camera to monitor your porch.



newsroom@trailtimes.ca

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Sheri Regnier

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