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Thieves in North Van use scaffolding to access properties

North Vancouver RCMP are warning the public after a pair of break-ins in which thieves used construction scaffolding to get easy access to above-ground balcony doors. The thefts happened on Aug. 5 and Aug. 15.
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North Vancouver RCMP are warning the public after a pair of break-ins in which thieves used construction scaffolding to get easy access to above-ground balcony doors.

The thefts happened on Aug. 5 and Aug. 15. In one of the cases, the victim woke up and caught the burglar red-handed.

“She heard some rummaging and literally saw somebody leave via the same way. She discovered her purse had been gone through,” said Cpl. Richard De Jong, North Vancouver RCMP spokesman.

Because it was dark, the only thing the witness could say for sure about the burglar was that he was a man.

In both cases, the thieves made off with wallets and purses

Investigators are not releasing where the buildings are and De Jong could not say whether the crimes are related.

“That we don’t know. There is two. There could be more,” he said.

Police routinely warn people not to leave doors and windows open in the hot summer months, but De Jong said everyone should treat the presence of scaffolding as a heightened risk.

“During the day, there tends to be construction people around, but on weekends and nights, just be extra vigilant,” he said.