The theft of an iPad belonging to an eight year old little girl has resulted in the arrest of a Richmond man.
At approximately 3 pm, July 20, 2016, a mother and her eight year old daughter, who is diagnosed with non-verbal autism, were purchasing fares at a Compass vending machine at Brighouse Station in Richmond. When the little girl put her iPad down for a moment, a man swooped in and grabbed it up.
The mother reported the theft and a good description of the suspect immediately to a Canada Line Attendant, who reported it to the Transit Police and the Canada Line Operations, Maintenance and Control Centre (OMC).
OMC staff was able to locate the man on CCTV and track his movements as he boarded a train headed for Bridgeport Station. Transit Police officers boarded the train upon its arrival, located the suspect and took him into custody without incident.
The suspect, a 22 year old Richmond man who is previously known to police, opened his bag and relinquished the iPad to police.
The suspect was interviewed and later released on a Promise to Appear in Richmond Provincial Court on September 15, 2016 at 9 am. A charge of Theft Under $5000.00 has been recommended.
The quick thinking and solid partnership of the Canada Line Attendant, the OMC staff and the Transit Police resulted not only in the arrest of a thief on our system, but the return of the iPad to a very grateful little girl and her mother.
