Port Moody Police are recommending charges against an individual after finding hundreds of stolen documents, doctored IDs and other evidence at a Surrey storage facility.
There was so many documents — likely stolen from cars and mail boxes — police needed a van to cart away all the materials.
Among the large cache were credit cards, identity cards and mail, according to Const. Sam Zacharias of the PMPD.
The investigation began in June, 2022 when a victim of identity theft called PMPD after discovering a credit card was opened in their name and a $5,000 purchase and been made on the charge card.
Const. Zacharias said the credit card was likely taken out using identity stolen from the victim.
After the call, the investigator was able to trace the fraudulent transactions and identify a suspect.
This lead the investigation to multiple properties in Surrey including a secure storage facility.
The suspect, who is well-known to police, was arrested and charges of identity theft, fraud, and unauthorized possession of credit card data are being recommended to crown counsel.
“This investigation demonstrates how important it is to report fraud to your local police as it can unearth wide-scale operations like this” stated Const. Zacharias in a press release.
“Preliminary examination of these seized documents suggests many were stolen from mailboxes and vehicles — highlighting the importance of removing valuables from vehicles and regularly checking your mail.”
