Vancouver bakery bandit nabs 6 cupcakes, mops floor and leaves

When it comes to bizarre break-ins in Vancouver, this caper may just take the cake. 

Surveillance footage posted to social media shows a young man breaking through the glass door of a bakery, trying to sweep up the glass with a mop, and meandering around before taking some selfies on a store phone.

He is then spotted leaving with a box of six Chocolate Champagne cupcakes under his arm.

Owner of Sweet Something Emma Irvine initially took to TikTok to share the unique story.

“When I posted that TikTok I thought only my friends were going to see it,” Irvine told CityNews. “Now it’s got over 1 million views, it’s been shared a crazy amount of times. It’s been an interesting experience figuring out how we make a bad experience into a good one.”

Irvine said she had a horrible feeling when she found her front door shattered, but that all changed when she watched the security footage.

“It turned from this sinking moment into a really good laugh with the team. We all have had a good giggle in the back and knowing that it was just six cupcakes and no one was injured, you can’t be too mad at it. He did try to clean up,” she said.

In an interview with CityNews, Irvine says she’s not looking to press charges.

“You can tell he’s in some way a good guy, he tried to clean up his mess. No big deal. Honestly, we all make mistakes.”

Apart from damages to the front door, it looks like the break-in may have been good for business as the video she shared is gaining traction online.

As for the reason why the man broke in, Irivine says sometimes you just get a craving.

“We all get our cravings and some people really, really need our cupcakes or treats. They are very good. So, I’m sure it has something to do with that,” she said.

Sweet Something bakery located in the Dunbar neighbourhood. (Angela Bower, CityNews Image)

Irvine says they are hoping for an uptick in business, and have even created a special cupcake to commemorate the break-in.

The cupcakes, named Crime of Passion, reference the selfie pictures taken by the suspect in which he can be seen wearing a notable accessory.

“We’ve started selling these cupcakes in our burglar’s honour with some orange sunglasses made out of sugar cookies on the job to help us pay for a new door,” she explained.

The store has been in business for more than five years, and Irvine says this isn’t the first time a “sweet treat thief” has struck.

She says a few years ago someone snagged a few treats on their way out of the bakery and didn’t pay for them.

Irvine says not all break-ins turn out this way and she’s grateful no one was hurt.

“A lot of small businesses have really struggled, and again, it’s hard to recover from these things,” she said.

“Not every business is going to have a fun light-hearted story when somebody breaks in. We’re really on the lucky end of it, and we’re glad nobody was injured…Be a community, respect your neighbors, we’re all in it together.”

The Vancouver Police Department (VPD) confirms there was an incident at the bakery, noting that a man apparently in his 20s “hung out in front of the store for approximately 30 minutes before kicking in the glass front door and entering the closed business.”

Police note he is suspected of taking the half-dozen cupcakes.

No one has been arrested, and the investigation is ongoing, police say.