Vancouver’s Salvation Army targeted by thieves

Thursday, December 04 - 07:03:24 PM Jim Goddard

VANCOUVER (News1130) - Heartless crooks have hit the Salvation Army. About 80 boxes of toys, worth at least $25,000, were stolen from the Vancouver warehouse near Kingsway and Fraser.

Major Brian Venables says that's not all they took.

"Unfortunately, they also felt it was a good idea to steal some of the meat that we had in our freezer, and so they left the freezers open all night, so what they didn't take is now partially thawed out so we have to discard it."

Venables says the thieves targeted hard to get toys for teens like cosmetic kits, karaoke machines, MP3 players and headphones. He says if someone felt such an urgent need for a toy, they could have just asked for one. He says the crooks even used the Salvation Army's equipment to haul the loot out of the building.

Venables says the theft is especially frustrating for his staff because donations were up 40% so far this year, likely because people felt the need to help out during the economic crisis.

If you'd like to help the Salvation Army, go here.