‘Sun’s out, thieves out’: RCMP urging caution as rising temperatures leads to increased theft risk

KAMLOOPS — Police in Kamloops are urging people to lock out auto crime by not leaving any valuables in parked vehicles while enjoying nature with the warmer spring weather here.

Mounties say while it is tempting for people to leave purses, wallets, phones, and other valuables in a vehicle, it is an equally tempting opportunity for thieves looking for an easy score.

“We are taking this opportunity to remind our community to leave valuables at home”, Sandro Piroddi, the Kamloops RCMP Detachment’s Crime Prevention Coordinator said. “Opportunistic thieves will target vehicles parked in trail head/park parking lots and it takes only seconds for them to break in, steal your items and flee.”

Piroddi says these thefts then generally lead to fraudulent activity on stolen debit or credit cards, and in some instances, identify theft.