Someone is stealing daffodil boxes raising funds for cancer victims from stores around New Westminster.
The funds raised through the sale of daffodils go to support Canadian Cancer Society programs for those living with cancer and those who have lost loved ones to the disease.
An estimated $600 was stolen from the boxes.
In some cases, the boxes were stolen multiple times from the same location by what appears to be the same suspect.
Karima Jivrai is the owner of Bosley’s Pet Food Plus, one of the many businesses supporting the daffodil campaign that was targeted.
Jivrai says she got suspicious when the suspect walked into her store and would not move away from the counter area.
She says when the cashier got momentarily distracted, the man made the run for the door with the box under his jacket.
“He basically put the magazine up, put the box behind it, and under his jacket,” says Jivrai. “And when he left the store, I saw the box under his jacket, so I went after him and got the box back with the help of two customers.”
New Westminster is one of the biggest supporters of the daffodil campaign with 79 boxes spread throughout the city that are taken care of by a long-time society volunteer.
Daffodil Month is Canadian Cancer Society’s biggest fundraiser of the year.
This year, the Society has more than 3,000 pin box locations across British Columbia.
Ron Kuehl with the Canadian Cancer Society says they are disgusted by the thefts.
New Westminster Police Department is investigating the thefts.
Meanwhile, the Society is putting additional protection measures in place to make the pin boxes more secure, including zap-strapping them to the counters.
Kuehl says people who want to donate to the Canadian Cancer Society, can also do so online at cancer.ca.
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