‘Disabled’ undercover cop waits for robbers in Vancouver but only finds kindnessThere ha
‘Disabled’ undercover cop waits for robbers in Vancouver but only finds kindnessThere have been 28 violent offences on wheelchair-using folk in Vancouver since January 2014, according to the Vancouver Police Department. Two-thirds of those crimes occurred in the drug-infested Downtown Eastside (DTES). One of the victims was sexually assaulted; six others required medical attention.Working with other VPD members, peer support workers and rehabilitation specialists, police staff sergeant Mark Horsley hatched a cunning scheme. He borrowed a $16,000 electric-powered wheelchair, grew some facial hair and wheeled into the DTES, undercover.The objective: pretend to be disabled and brain-injured from a motorcycle accident that never really happened. Play the “easy mark.” Bait criminals by flashing cash and valuables, such as cellphones and cameras.Instead, people approached with offers of sympathy and hope. Encouragement. Friendly cautions. They made unsolicited donations: food, other stuff, and $24 in spare change. Two men bought him pizza. Others just stopped and chatted, passed the time, exchanged pleasantries. All anyone took was his photograph.In five days of undercover work from his wheelchair, with loot hanging from a fanny pack for all to see and perhaps snatch, and after more than 300 “contacts” with people, Horsley made not a single arrest. Once, a guy came along and crouched over Horsley. He reached in, as if making for the fanny pack. Horsley tensed. Here it was, at last: Heinous crime in progress, bust coming up. The man’s fingers touched the fanny pack. Then the prospective perp zippered it shut. He asked Horsley to please be more careful with his things, for goodness sake.Several more times, Horsley was approached and told to take care. By known criminals, even. This demonstrated there really is “honour” among certain thieves, he said. Robbing the disabled is “below their ethical standards,” he concluded. “The community will not stand for this.”PHOTO: Vancouver Police -- source link
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