When Megan Roberts passed away from cancer in June 2021, she left her daughters Margot (now 14) and Tess (now 12) and her husband gifts and heirlooms.
Among them were student IDs, a medical badge and jewellery from her family she wanted to pass on to them. The family kept the items close, in their bedrooms, with their treasures.
This weekend, while they were visiting with Megan's family on a group vacation, someone broke into their house and spent hours ransacking their rooms, eventually leaving with a number of items, including those left by Megan.
"He took a lot of other stuff, but these are the only things we really want back," says Craig, Megan's husband.
A brazen theft
The theft happened Saturday morning, Jan. 14. The family has security cameras and alarms set up at their Kitsilano home, but that didn't dissuade the thief.
The security footage (see below) shows a man climbing the stairs around 2:30 a.m., looking at packages Amazon had dropped off on the porch, moving them around, but leaving empty-handed. Later, around 4 a.m., the cameras pick up someone walking from the backyard with what appears to be a dolly.
It's unclear if the people in the clips are the same person or part of the theft.
Unfortunately, there's no footage of the actual break-in; Craig says a security camera's lens was spray painted.
An alarm went off around 9 a.m. and Roberts called a neighbour to see if they could go take a look. Antonio Nicoletti was that neighbour; from the outside, he couldn't see any signs of a break-in.
"Everything looked completely normal from the outside," says Craig.
Given that the alarm had gone off before when no one was there, the family continued their trip.
A couple of hours later, though, motion sensors were tripped inside the house.
Craig tried calling Nicoletti again, but he was in Port Moody; luckily, Nicoletti knew another neighbour who was able to go investigate.
This time, a man was clearly visible in Craig's office, going through his stuff. So, the neighbour knocked.
"The perpetrator opens the door and they have a conversation," Craig tells V.I.A.
The neighbour, who had never met Craig but knew the situation, quickly asked if a 'Daniel' was home.
"'No, he's not here right now,' the perpetrator said," recounts Craig. "My neighbour says, 'I'm supposed to meet him here,' and the guy says, 'He'll be back in 30.'"
The interaction ended and the neighbour walked back down to the street, on the phone with Nicoletti. The police were quickly called; however, the man slipped back out before they arrived.
"The robber at that point went out the back door with my daughter's bike and the backpack full of stuff," Craig says.
His neighbour described the man to Craig as a Caucasian male standing about 5'9" and around 160 pounds; notably, he had very pale eyes. He was wearing a grey hoody and a dark baseball cap, as well as a COVID-19 mask.
Important family items taken
Craig estimates the man was in their house for more than three hours.
"He took, oddly, a lot of men's clothes," Craig says. "The police describe it as he kinda went shopping. He took toiletries."
While many of the items are, ultimately, not that important, there are a few things that mean a great deal to Craig and his daughters.
"There were the last three gifts my wife had left for us," he says. "One for each of my daughters and one for me. He took those presents out of my bedroom."
They were being saved for one of the girl's upcoming birthdays. For Tess, there was an antique ring passed down from her grandmother; for Margot, an antique bracelet; they know this because notes attached to the gifts were left crumpled.
Craig's not sure what his wife's last gift to him was.
It wasn't just the gifts, though. Also stolen were Megan's student IDs from when she was a student at UBC and the University of Nottingham (she was a popular psychiatrist and professor at UBC, and even recorded a podcast about facing death as a mother).
Craig says the IDs are 'at the top' of the list as far as what they hope to get back, noting they hold little value to anyone else and may be tossed in a back alley or park.
There was also jewelry left to Margot and Tess, including several bracelets and a necklace. One has Tess's name in cursive, another has a wave, while a third has KAIKANA written on it. A ring with a diamond shape on it is also missing, along with some Blue Ruby bracelets.
Taken from Craig were the couple's three wedding bands (all were from Tiffany & Co.): his plain platinum band, her solitaire diamond ring and another with around a dozen small gold diamonds.
Luckily, the man didn't take USB sticks containing audio messages from Megan to her family.
The search begins
Craig has nothing but praise for the police, who showed up quickly, brought a police dog to the scene, and did a thorough sweep of the house for evidence.
"I'm in deep gratitude," he says. "No one wants to be in this position, but I'm very grateful that when it did this was the response from the police."
He's also trying to locate the missing items himself, first by talking to media, but also by going on sites like craigslist.
"We're hoping someone might see the IDs," he says. "Maybe someone recognizes the KAIKANA necklace."
If anyone does have information, they can reach the family at [email protected]. They can also anonymously call Vancouver Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 with tips.
He adds that one thing this experience has taught him is to get to know the neighbours, who he thanks for their help.
"We were able to have people on the scene when we were out of town," Craig says. "Make friends with your neighbours. It has lots of benefits, not just for security."
Editor's note: Craig Roberts works for Glacier Media, the parent company of Vancouver Is Awesome.
