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A West Vancouver man is warning others to be vigilant after his home was broken into through an upper floor while his family – including his two children – were home.
Arshia Bivadi said his family is living at his in-laws’ house on Hadden Drive while their own home in West Vancouver is under construction.
Bivadi said one evening last week, he and his wife were downstairs after putting their kids to bed when they heard strange noises coming from upstairs.
Bivadi said he immediately ran upstairs, while yelling that he was coming up and for whoever might be in the house to get out.
As he rounded a corner, Bivadi said he saw two people running to a window. One escaped down a ladder that had been placed against the house while the second person jumped off a balcony, he said. Bivadi said he ran to the window and saw the pair run through the yard and hop over a fence.
Luckily the would-be thieves didn’t get away with anything of value after being surprised in the act.
But Bivadi said the experience left him unnerved – especially given the presence of his young children at home.
“They knew we were home,” he said, pointing out that the thieves had leaned a ladder against the house to access the second floor while he and his wife were downstairs. “It’s not that they were targeting an empty home.”
Bivadi said a similar theft happened the next day to friends on Langton Place, where thieves also climbed to an upper level of the home by stacking up recycling bins. In that case, the residents weren’t home and the thieves got away with much more.
According to a report by the West Vancouver police block watch team, several recent break-ins in the district have involved suspects climbing to upper floors of homes.
“Entry was gained in one case through an open upper window. In others suspects smashed through balcony doors,” according to the report.
In Bivadi’s case, thieves used a ladder to climb to the second floor. Suspects in another case are believed to have used a tree close to the home to access an upper floor door.
According to the block watch report, the tactic of thieves climbing to upper floor windows or doors to gain entry has been noticed recently in several Lower Mainland municipalities.
According to block watch, thieves target second-floor entry points hoping they won’t be secured or equipped with alarm sensors or security video systems.
The recent West Vancouver break-ins targeted homes near Taylor Way, Upper Ambleside, the British Properties and Southridge areas.
Sgt. Mark McLean of the West Vancouver Police said break-ins when residents are home are still unusual. Most often, when it does happen it’s because thieves have mistakenly pegged the house as unoccupied, he said.
McLean added investigations into the recent break-ins are still very active.
