Police charge 3, search for 3 more and maybe others in distraction theft racket involving jewelry

The Edmonton Police Service says three people have been charged and the hunt is on for three others in connection with "distraction" style thefts.

Edmonton police have charged three people and are on the hunt for at least three more in relation to several distraction thefts in the area since May.

The Edmonton Police Service (EPS) said Tuesday it has charged Alexandra Calin, 36, Florentina Calin, 32, and Maricica Grecu, 23 with theft under $5,000.

Officers are searching for three others they say are a part of the racket: Robert Pancu, 26, Rodica Panciu, 28, and Petre Calin, 28.

Earlier this month, police began investigating the activities of a group they suspected of stealing more than $1,500 in merchandise from a grocery store and committing distraction thefts of gold jewelry.

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Const. Shiva Shunmugam of the EPS southwest branch said Tuesday that, since May, police have received more than 60 reports of thefts using distraction techniques, but expect the total to be much higher once analysts tabulate all the incidents.

“I’m pretty sure that the number is going to be in the hundreds,” he told media.

On Aug. 12, officers with Edmonton police, the RCMP and the Canadian Border Services Agency arrested and charged Grecu, and Alexandra and Florentina Calin in Strathcona County after using a search warrant. There, police recovered gold jewelry, imitation gold jewelry, a 2009 Mercedes ML350 they say is associated with the offences and more than $45,000 in proceeds of crime.

Shunmugam told media the group of thieves involved in the distraction thefts in the city “has involvement in multiple jurisdictions and are currently being investigated by respective jurisdictions,” including police in Beaumont, Strathcona County, Toronto, Ontario’s Peel region and Surrey, B.C.

He said the reason why the Canadian Border Services Agency is involved in the case “is because some of the suspects who we are dealing with currently have claimed protected status.”

While police have charged three people and are looking for three others, Shunmugam said they believe more people might be involved in the racket.

Police say the recent distraction thefts have seen thieves approach and rob victims in parking lots, the driveways of homes or on roadsides. They say the thieves may have tried to establish a rapport with victims before robbing them, and that they operate in large, family-type groups that often include children.

“There are more suspects out there,” said Shunmugam, who asked for public help to find them. “They work as a group. They work (in a) coordinated approach to what they do with distraction thefts. We’ve been following a pattern on how it is occurring.”

He said the group does not have a permanent address in Edmonton and that they’re known to sign long-term leases only to break them abruptly within 15 days to a month “and keep on moving.”

Anyone with information about such crimes are asked to call Edmonton police at 780-423-4567 or to contact Crime Stoppers anonymously by phone [phone]) or online.