Sunshine Coast RCMP is seeking assistance from the public after a theft of an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) in Pender Harbour.
According to police, the Pender Harbour landfill office was broken into during the night of Feb. 5/6. A staff member discovered the break-in when he arrived for work the next morning. The suspect caused substantial damage to the facility, breaking through an exterior gate, and multiple doors.
In addition to the damage done to the facility, among the items stolen was an AED, which was donated to the facility by the Heart and Stroke Foundation.
“This was a really low act,” said media liaison Const. Harrison Mohr. “The AED had been donated to be used in an emergency to save a life, and some thoughtless person took it for their own selfless reasons.”
The suspect also set off a fire extinguisher inside a shed in the facility. Police attended and examined the scene, and have seized an item for analysis by Forensic Identification Services. The investigation is ongoing.
Police are asking for the public’s assistance in locating the suspect, or at least recovering the AED.
“The AED will likely be of little use or value to the person who took it, so we ask that they return it to the landfill, or drop it off in a public place so that it can be returned, and be available should someone truly need it in a life and death situation,” said Mohr.
Anyone with information can call Sunshine Coast RCMP at 604-885-2266, or if you wish to make an anonymous report, call Crimestoppers, at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
