A shoplifting sting at Port Moody’s Suter Brook Village yesterday, Feb. 13, resulted in a prolific offender being arrested twice — in the same hour.
Const. Sam Zacharias of the Port Moody Police Department (PMPD) said loss prevention officers and police were at Suter Brook after retailers complained of increasing thefts from their stores.
If the loss prevention officers witnessed a theft, they were to notify police to make an on-scene arrest, Zacharias explained.
At around 6:15 p.m., an officer alerted PMPD after a man took food from a store and fled on foot; he was stopped by police and the items were recovered.
The suspect was released with conditions and given a court date.
But, around 7:15 p.m., the man was back at it, police say, when a loss prevention officer at a nearby store saw the same suspect grab more than $300 worth of liquor and leave the premises.
Again, he was arrested; however, this time, he was held in custody and his case reviewed by a judge.
Zacharias said the man has nearly 20 convictions for theft, and more for other crimes.
“Projects like this demonstrate the collaboration between police and local businesses,” Zacharias stated in a news release.
“With help of these retailers, we were able to apprehend a prolific offender who remains in police custody at this time.”
