Medicine Hat package theft more common than reported, police say

With the holidays approaching, packages are arriving frequent as ever, but also disappearing at the same time.

Jason Graham, operations inspector with Medicine Hat Police Service, says that although not many reports have been made previously, the statistics may not be entirely accurate.

“Yeah, we’ve seen it in the past. I wouldn’t say that we have a high frequency of it. The challenge is that we’re only able to respond to the ones that we’re aware of,” He said.

“I’m assuming that there’s a lot of cases where people aren’t reporting it to the police, or the packages haven’t been delivered,” He added.

Graham said that most people may decide reporting a theft isn’t necessary, and instead prefer to contact the supplier for a reimbursement.

He recommends that people do not take up the matter on their own, as far as confronting a thief, as this can lead to further conflict by escalating the situation.

The Medicine Hat Police Service offers several tips to prevent this kind of situation from occurring in the first place.

“If they know they’re getting a parcel delivered, to maybe see if they can arrange it for a day when they’re home. Alternatively, maybe have a neighbor come and grab the package, have it delivered somewhere where they know there’s going to be people that can receive and accept that package on their behalf,” Graham said.

“There’s a lot of things you can do as far as tracking the package, knowing exactly when it’s delivered, and maybe you can run home and grab it, so it limits the amount of time that it’s sitting there unattended,”

Quiroga-Batten was one of the victims of a parcel thief who made visits to several houses last week.

She said that personally it was the first time this type of theft had happened to her, but not the first time in her neighborhood.

“I don’t do a whole lot of online shopping, but I do know of people who’ve had their parcels taken before, unfortunately, and in my area as well. I hear it does happen kind of frequently, which is unfortunate, but it’s been a good learning curve for me knowing what to do next time if I’m to order online again and take those measurements to hopefully avoid any other incidents happening with that,” She said.

With the upcoming holiday season, online shopping and delivery rates will be the highest of the year.

Even if this particular situation hasn’t happened to you, it certainly doesn’t mean it couldn’t at any time.

“We’re in a society now where a lot of people are ordering things online. With that being said, the frequency goes up, you know, the opportunity is there as well. So, again, I don’t see it being a rash of thefts here in Medicine Hat. However, we, again, we’re moving into the holiday season. There’s more of an opportunity. People will take it.” Graham said.

Take any necessary precautions to avoid theft, such as communicating with your courier before delivery.

In a season of giving that may also come with taking away, parcel thieves can be deterred if discretion is used when it comes to delivery convenience.

by Jayk Sterkenburg

Medicine Hat package theft more common than reported, police say

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