Two businesses have fallen prey to break-and-enters and theft over the long weekend, adding to the slew of vandalism two weekends ago.
The Standard’s Wallace Street office was broken into as was the Hope Golf and Country Club, which suffered vandalism for the third time in a span of two weeks. They had three broken windows after they got broken into on Aug. 25 and Aug. 27. They boarded up the windows afterwards, but that did not stop vandals.
Just about a week after those incidents, they suffered more vandalism on the overnight hours between Saturday and Sunday.
“It seems to be the same kids,” said owner-operator Bonnie Cianfagna. “They actually came up where it was boarded up, and they took the board off, and they placed it on … the lawn, and then they entered through the hole that they made prior … and then they went right to the beer fridge. They filled up their backpacks with beer and chocolate bars.”
Cianfagna said they got the perpetrators on video.
“But they had their faces completely covered,” said Cianfagna. “They knew what they were doing.”
She described them as three male minors and classifies the incident more as an act of vandalism than theft because the perpetrators did not steal 26-ounce bottles of vodka, nor professional golfing equipment, nor cash.
They were dressed in loose jeans so much so that boxers can be seen.
Cianfagna said police saw them just before the bridge crossing the Coquihalla River. She added that police released their dogs and the perpetrators dropped a backpack full of beer.
Cianfagna and her husband, Vince, went to the scene at 3:30 a.m. on Sunday morning to speak with the police. She noticed that all three incidents happened around this time.
The Standard also had its rear door smashed and a computer stolen, also during the overnight hours of Saturday and Sunday. Police have collected items for prints.
Neither the Hope RCMP detachment commander nor the Upper Fraser Valley Regional Detachment media spokesperson were available for comment as they are away on holiday.
