OTTAWA -- Residents in a west-end neighbourhood are keeping a close eye on their online shopping deliveries following a string of porch thefts in the area.
On Wednesday, residents at several homes in a Kanata Lakes neighbourhood reported stolen packages from their front doors.
"At 6 o’clock we came out to get the package, but it wasn’t there, but Amazon said it was delivered already,” said Wei, one of many who reported stolen items from their properties.
"We checked the video, seems to be some boys came by and picked it up."
According to the Kanata Lakes Community Association, porch pirates targeted several homes; with the thefts happening fast and while people were at home.
The thefts have left other residents in the area on high alert.
"It’s a little unsettling as to why it’s happening. This is a pretty quiet street, so it’s a little unsettling," said neighbours Casey and Olive.
"It’s definitely a concern to me, nowadays we’re doing more and more online shopping, a lot of stuff is getting delivered to the door," added GouyanZhang.
Ottawa police say they have seen an uptick in this type ofcrime.
“We have seen a slight increase in porch pirating,” said Const.Martin Dompierre. “That type of crime is more prevalent in urban areas, so when there are houses that are close together, there’s more porch pirating in those zones, so if you live in a zone like that just be conscious of that."
Some companies are offering new delivery options. There are three Amazon Hub lockers in Ottawa, where you can now have your packages delivered instead of to your home.
Meanwhile, some of the most common ways to avoid having your items stolen include timing the exact delivery, requiring a signature, or using a safe package drop box on your porch.
