Police warn public about recent distraction theft scam and ask for assistance in identifying a suspect

**Update** Individuals arrested in Peel Region following flight from police in Kingston’s west end

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On April 30, 2024, Kingston Police responded to a call regarding an attempted distraction theft in Kingston’s west end. Police located the suspect vehicle, a silver four door Hyundai Elantra with a taxi sign affixed to the roof, however, when officers attempted to stop the vehicle, in the area of Midland Avenue south of Cataraqui Woods Drive, it fled from police. Affixed to the rear of the suspect vehicle was a stolen licence plate.

Kingston Police issued a media release on May 1, 2024, with pictures of one of the two suspects involved and the suspect vehicle itself and were later notified by Peel Regional Police that they had arrested two individuals in their jurisdiction, one of whom matched the description of the suspect provided by Kingston Police.

Upon arrest, both accused parties had been located inside the suspect vehicle, which was subsequently seized by Peel Regional Police. Both accused parties were arrested on similar charges in Peel Region as the offences that had taken place in Kingston one day prior.

Kingston Police continue to investigate the offences that were perpetrated by these two accused parties here in our community. Anyone who may have witnessed these two suspects, either during their attempted distraction theft attempts or while fleeing from police, or anyone who may have dash cam video or photos of the incidents, is asked to please contact the Kingston Police Criminal Investigations Division by calling 613-549-4660.

You can also provide tips anonymously by calling our general number 613-549-4660 ext. 0 and asking to remain anonymous.

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On April 30, 2024, at approximately 6:35 p.m. an attempted distraction theft occurred outside of a store located in the area of Bayridge Drive and Taylor Kidd Boulevard in Kingston’s west end.

The complainant had attended this location and while outside of the store they were approached by the male suspect, who had just exited from the passenger side seat of a silver car, which was pulled up in front of the store. The vehicle had a taxi sign affixed to the roof and there was a second male who remained in the driver’s seat of the car throughout the encounter.

The suspect asked the complainant if he could give them cash for the use of their debit card, while explaining that the taxicab driver would only accept debit or credit and that his card was not presently working.

When the complainant handed the male their debit card the suspect took it and then dropped it intentionally inside the passenger door and was seen using a different card in the payment processor. The complainant, now suspecting that this was a scam, realized what had happened and immediately asked for their card back and the suspect complied with their request.

The suspect then got back into the vehicle and left the scene traveling eastbound on Taylor Kidd Boulevard. Police were contacted and quickly attended and searched the area, however, were unable to locate the suspect vehicle.

On this same date at approximately 8:20 p.m., while still searching for the suspect in the west end of Kingston, police located the vehicle parked in front of a store on Midland Avenue south of Cataraqui Woods Drive. Officers observed the suspect exit the store and get into the vehicle and immediately attempted to conduct a traffic stop in the parking lot with their emergency lights activated, however, the vehicle fled from the scene.

Further investigation revealed that the rear licence plate # BBNH415, which was attached to the suspect vehicle, had been previously reported as stolen from the Greater Toronto Area. The suspect vehicle is described as a silver four door Hyundai Elantra.

The suspect is described as a Caucasian male with a thin build and brown hair. He was wearing blue shoes with light blue laces, black pants, and a blue zip-up jacket. In one instance the suspect was also wearing a black New Era hat with white lettering and the sticker still affixed to the top of the beak.

Anyone with information regarding the identity of the suspect or the location of the vehicle involved, is asked to please contact Constable Craig Morton via email at cmorton@kingstonpolice.ca.

You can also provide tips anonymously by calling the Kingston Police general number 613-549-4660 ext. 0 and asking to remain anonymous.

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Police are reminding the public that various forms of distraction theft scams are on the rise across Ontario. These scam artists and thieves tend to prey on vulnerable members of our community, including seniors, and Kingston Police is issuing a reminder that it is important to always be situationally aware and to never hand over your debit or credit card to a stranger. Further, do not be tricked into giving your PIN number to a stranger and cover up keypads while entering your PIN numbers at checkouts in stores or at banks. It is also important to be aware that there are generally multiple crooks involved in these schemes and their goal is to distract you while they attempt to defraud you. Don’t be tricked by their tactics and call police immediately should you believe that you have been targeted.