Nanaimo RCMP have a case of theft in the bag, so to speak, after police were able to return two recycling bags of stolen drink containers to Loaves and Fishes Community Food Bank.
The two mega bags filled with donated cans, bottles and tetra packs were stolen at about 6 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 14, from the food bank’s Farquhar Street location, according to a Nanaimo RCMP press release. Before police arrived, Peter Sinclair, Loaves and Fishes Community Food Bank executive director, had already reported the theft to the closest recycling depot and asked staff to be on the lookout for the items.
According to the release, officers were shown a video of the theft, which also showed images of the persons allegedly responsible, and a short time later the recycling depot advised one of the suspects had arrived along with the mega bags.
The officers rushed to the recycling depot, promptly identified the suspect and arrested him for the theft and found the both mega bags stashed across the street.
“They took the bags and somehow they dragged them down there and dragged them out into the bushes and waited till the shop opened and then they started taking them piecemeal … into the recycling depot,” said reserve Const. Gary O’Brien, Nanaimo RCMP spokesperson.
Sinclair told the officers he was not interested in pursuing charges and was satisfied with having the items returned.
Const. Cam Voller, who was leading the investigation, was confronted with getting the hundreds of containers back into their bags and to Loaves and Fishes, so he managed to convince the suspect to repack the bags by offering him the choice of doing so or facing theft charges.
“It [was] in his best interest to load them back up into the bags … It took him about 30 minutes while [the officer] waited patiently,” O’Brien said.
The donated recyclables had a value of about $500, which will be used to purchase food for the food bank.
The suspect will not face charges, but is banned from visiting the recycling depot.
