A Vancouver police organized crime project has resulted in five arrests and hundreds of thousands of dollars worth in cash, drugs and property seized.
Investigators began a months-long operation in the spring, tracking stolen property from stores to the sidewalks of Downtown Eastside, and eventually to suspect homes.
“The shoplifting epidemic is fueling an illicit market for stolen property that impacts small businesses, employees, and consumers,” Insp. Mario Mastropieri said. “Much of that illicit market runs straight through the Downtown Eastside, where stolen property is bought and sold in plain sight, then resold for profit online.”
Police believe “organized fencing operations” pay pennies on the dollar for stolen goods, which may be resold online for large profits.
Vancouver police officers tracked stolen goods from the Downtown Eastside to homes in residential neighbourhoods.
“Our work confirmed that fencing operations are fueling an underground economy of shoplifting and that some criminals are making thousands of dollars a week for buying and selling stolen merchandise,” Mastropieri said. “These criminal fences recruit desperate and drug-addicted Downtown Eastside residents to steal from stores.”
A few months ago in March, officers tracked stolen property to a home on East Georgia Street in the Strathcona neighbourhood.
Through a search warrant, officers found $155,000 in cash, stolen electronics, designer clothing, pain medication and vitamins. Two people, a man and woman in their 60s, were arrested for stolen property.
In April, officers witnessed a man and a woman buy stolen property near East Hastings and Carrall Street. The two were tracked to homes in the Kensington-Cedar Cottage area and Hastings-Sunrise in East Vancouver. Police found stolen baby formula, athletic apparel, toiletries, vitamins, electronics, alcohol at the homes. Police estimate officers seized more than $230,000 worth of stolen goods.
A man in his 40s and a woman in her 50s were arrested. Police also seized two vehicles that were believed to be used to store and transport stolen goods.
A month later in May, a search warrant was carried out at a home on Nanaimo Street, near Trout Lake Park. Police found stolen cosmetics, clothing, designer purses, athletic apparel, liquor, vitamins, and cocaine and fentanyl. It is estimated that $107,000 worth of stolen property was seized along with $10,000 in drugs.
A woman was arrested and a car was seized as well.
“These were complex and lengthy investigations that involved dozens of skilled front-line officers and specialized investigators,” said Insp. Mike Kim, officer in charge of VPD’s Identify Theft and Anti-Fencing Unit. “In each of these cases, we believe criminals knowingly bought stolen property on East Hastings Street and drove it to their homes with the intention of selling it online.”
The arrests are part of the latest phase of Project Barcode, initiated by Vancouver Police in February 2023. The project was created to combat “violent and chronic” shoplifters at retail stores throughout the city. Since then, police said VPD initiatives have resulted in nearly 1,200 arrests and recovery of $1.4 million in stolen property.
