Nanaimo ‘porch pirates’ arrested days after security footage released

Less than four days after RCMP released details on a “porch pirate” theft of home-delivered parcels, police say they have made two arrests.

Nanaimo RCMP received two reports on December 9th of stolen parcels. The first incident occurred at 10:45 a.m., at a home on Latimer Road. Less than an hour later, another parcel was stolen from a residence on Howard Avenue.

In the course of their investigation, police also connected the incidents to a parcel theft that occurred on November 3, from a home on Rosstown Road.

Home security footage provided in each theft along with tips from the public helped investigators in identifying two suspects, a 31-year-old woman and a 33-year-old man.

They were arrested during a vehicle stop on Milton Street in Nanaimo at approximately 3 p.m. on December 13th.

Both Nanaimo residents were arrested for multiple charges of theft under $5,000. A search of the male suspect also produced a collapsible baton and a small amount of illegal drugs.

Charges against the man are pending for the possession of these items. He was also served with a five month driving prohibition as his license had been suspended. The man’s license was seized.

A search of the suspect’s vehicle, which was registered to the male suspect, produced a number of pieces of mail that police suspect was stolen.

RCMP are examining the mail to determine if it was stolen and more charges could be pursued. No Amazon parcels were found in the vehicle.

The suspects were released from custody on scheduled Nanaimo Provincial Court dates in March 2021.