Blake Culbert is still shaken up two days after his car was stolen from the parkade of his Kelowna, B.C., condo building.
That’s because this wasn’t a typical theft of a vehicle.
In this case, the suspect gained entry into his home first and stole his keys.
Culbert, who lives in a building near downtown Kelowna, woke up Wednesday morning to find his key rack near his front door empty.
“I noticed that my keys weren’t where they typically are hanging up and then I panicked,” Culbert told Global News.
He rushed downstairs to the building’s parkade where his worst fear was confirmed.
“My car wasn’t here,” Culbert said looking at his empty parking stall.
His car, a black 2014 Scion TC, had been stolen.
And while Culbert has no wheels to get around and lost some important and irreplaceable hockey gear, he is shaken up that someone was inside his home while he slept.
“Luckily that is all they took. They did not come harm me or anything like that but that makes me unsettled that something like that could happen,” Culbert said.
“They came in and invaded my privacy and came into my house.”
Culbert’s condo is a small studio suite with his bed only steps from the door.
He said he’s always been diligent about locking the door but must have accidentally left it unlocked that evening.
“The fact that it might have been the one time I somehow didn’t have my door locked makes me nervous,” he said.
According to Crime Stoppers, offenders go to all kinds of lengths to commit a crime.
“Criminals are very gutsy, it’s amazing,” said Linda Annis, executive director for Metro Vancouver Crime Stoppers.
“I have heard stories about not only people going into your home when you are sleeping at night but also stealing your garage door openers, perhaps when you are shopping from your car.”
Annis said insurance papers in the vehicle then tip off the culprits of your home address.
Annis is urging people to have a nightly routine to ensure homes are always left secure.
“There’s often times people lurking around homes and apartments looking for an opportunity to get into your house,” Annis said.
“Many of us don’t do safety checks at night, don’t check our sliding glass doors or check our front and back doors to make sure that they are secure.”
Culbert learned the hard way and said he will be even more diligent from now on.
“I will be extra careful now how I double lock my door,” he said. “I will be triple-checking all the time now.”
The car theft was reported to police. Culbert is still hopeful for a Christmas miracle — the return of his vehicle.
