Vancouver senior targeted by distraction thieves in own backyard

Vancouver police are warning the public after a 77-year-old senior was the target of adistraction theft in her own backyard in East Vancouver last weekend.

Police say the victimwas gardening on Saturday, July 20, at around 11 a.m., when a man and woman drove up to theCedar Cottage neighbourhood property in anSUV.

The woman got out of the vehicle, approached herand forced several pieces of costume jewellery into the senior'shands.

The victimresisted the woman,told her to leave, only later to discoverher gold bracelet had been taken off her wrist.

Fortunately, the senior was not injured inthe attack.

Two suspects

The female suspect is described as:

• 35 to 45 years old, with olive skin
• Five feet three inches tall with brown, shoulder-length hair
• Wearing dark floral-patterned dress with sandals and bright red nail polish

The male suspect who was drivingis described as:

• South Asian with darker skin
• Wearing black baseball cap, polo shirt

Police say distraction thieves are often successful, because suspects willuse the element of surprise to confuse and overwhelm their victims, who often don't realize items have been stolen until the thieveshave already left.

The Major Crime Section isnow investigating theincident.

Anyone with informationis asked to call VPD's Major Crime Section at 604-717-2541 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.