Police are on the lookout for a gang of Christmas elves that have been spotted breaking into homes and vehicles and stealing packages.
The Calgary Police Service said in a tweet dated Dec. 12 that Outlaw Elf has joined a gang of corrupt Christmas elves.
A spokesperson for the service said Tuesday he’s not sure what caused outlaw elf to give up on a life as Santa’s little helper.
“We just know at some point something went wrong and he took to a life of crime,” said Cst. Riley Babott.
This is the second year Outlaw Elf has been seen in Calgary. The first sighting was in 2015.
He and his gang of elves have been spotted stealing licence plates, breaking into homes and unlocked cars and even scamming unsuspecting homeowners.
Babott said property crime is prevalent during the holidays because people are away visiting family or attending parties. In the weeks leading up to Christmas, there’s also a lot of people getting gifts delivered to their doors.
“The criminals out there know this and so they’re searching for that,” he said. “So, that, along with break and enter-type crimes, selling stolen property – really anything that’s property-related – we’re seeing an increase.”
There are steps you can take to prevent your packages and personal items from being stolen, Babbott said Tuesday.
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He recommended tracking your shipments so that you know when packages are arriving and, if you’re not going to be home, asking a neighbour you trust to watch out for them.
You can also have packages shipped to your work so they won’t be left unattended on your doorstep.
Babbott is also reminding Calgarians to lock doors and windows and keep their vehicles secure.
His suggestion is to keep keys in an unlikely place, instead of hanging them by the front door and to store irreplaceable documents and photos in a location thieves wouldn’t expect or in a safe deposit box.
“If you want to keep it, make sure you secure it,” he said.