ON Tuesday, March 19 at 1:01 a.m., a semi-tractor entered an insecure warehouse lot on Annacis Island in Delta, and backed under a container and chassis positioned against the warehouse. Two suspects exited the truck, completed connecting to the trailer and then drove away within minutes.
There were 150 Biktrix electric bicycles with a declared value of $500,000 in the shipping container. The theft was captured on CCTV from the warehouse facility.
The truck is described as a white Freightliner daycab tractor with “Ryder” written on the doors.
Twelve hours later, at 12:58 p.m. on Tuesday, the trailer theft was reported to Delta Police.
On Friday, March 22, Township of Langley bylaw officers attended the area of 262 Street and 30A Avenue for a complaint of an illegally parked semi-trailer. The bylaw officers determined that the illegally parked trailer was the stolen trailer from Delta.
Langley RCMP assumed conduct of the trailer recovery. The trailer was empty, and missing its license plate. A video canvass of the area did not show the trailer being parked and left at the location. However, the canvass identified a witness who advised the trailer had been parked at the location on Monday, March 18 , a day before the trailer had been stolen.
Police said that Biktrix company representatives have been sharing evidence via media interviews and social media. This has complicated the police’s ability to conduct investigations overtly and covertly.
The Delta Police Department said it has a team of officers working to identify and hold accountable the people responsible for this theft and attempt to recover the stolen property. The theft was a crime of opportunity, and not specifically directed at Biktrix’s shipment. The suspects are known to be one male and one female, both dressed in dark clothing, and they made efforts to conceal their identity.
The whereabouts of the stolen bicycles are not currently known. To date, efforts to identify the tractor have not been successful.
Delta Police encourage all businesses to consider security measures to protect their valuable assets, including securing compounds and yards, on-site security, GPS tracking and utilizing pin-locks for their trailers that contain high-value shipments.
Should you have any information about this theft, the suspects, the truck used in the theft, or the location of the stolen electric bicycles, you are requested to call the Delta Police Department at (604) 946-4411 and quote file 24-4794. Alternatively, to remain anonymous, call CrimeStoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS.
As this is an ongoing investigation, Delta Police said they will not be making any further comments.
