Amazon driver arrested after $2,200 worth of packages stolen, sold online: Burnaby police
Posted November 8, 2023 5:50 pm.
Last Updated November 10, 2023 6:14 am.
Theft charges are pending after Mounties in Burnaby say an Amazon driver allegedly failed to deliver packages and instead put them up for sale online.
Const. Mike Kalanj says the company notified the Burnaby RCMP in September about one of its drivers, saying they were allegedly selling items that were supposed to be delivered on Facebook marketplace.
Kalanj says Amazon found that there was a total of 32 instances where customers didn’t receive their deliveries, despite the driver marking them as “complete.”
“Lucky for us, Amazon did an amazing investigation of their own. They provided us with a whole bunch of information,” he said.
Kalanj says the Burnaby RCMP’s Prolific Offender Suppression Team found several of the missing items for sale online and identified the suspect as a 28-year-old Vancouver resident. Police then executed a search warrant, found “a whole bunch of the property,” and arrested the suspect.
Kalanj could not provide many details about the person but explains around 32 items with an estimated total value of $2,200 were stolen and sold.
“I would say it’s pretty hard to get away with something like this … it’s kind of odd that someone would try this,” he said.
“I’m sure one day it could happen again but it’s not a regular thing, not by a longshot.”
In a statement, Amazon says it is supporting the RCMP in its investigation, adding “this person is no longer delivering for Amazon.”
“We pride ourselves on great customer service – and we encourage anyone who believes they have been a victim of package theft to reach out to our 24/7 Customer Service team for assistance,” Amazon spokesperson Barbara Agrait said in a statement to CityNews.
Meanwhile, Mounties say there will likely be a “significant number” of counts of theft under $5,000.
Kalanj tells CityNews that police have been working to get the packages back to their rightful owners as well.
“A lot of these packages, we were able to locate the owners and bring them to them so potentially they have a better holiday season coming up,” he said.
While the suspect is based in Vancouver, Kalanj says the Burnaby RCMP handled the investigation because the complaint came from Burnaby.
With the holidays coming up, Kalanj is advising people — especially those living in apartments or places where packages don’t fit in a mailbox — to check their mail as often as twice a day.
Editor’s note: This article has been updated to include a statement from Amazon.
