Frustration mounts over ‘porch pirates’ in Halifax community

Many Halifax residents in the north end say porch pirates are becoming more brazen.

Frustration is mounting among some homeowners in the north end of Halifax, who say “porch pirates” are becoming more brazen in the area.

A video posted to the North End Community Circle Facebook group shows a woman allegedly scooping up a package inside a mailbox and placing what looks like a flyer inside before taking off.

Halifax Regional Police says they are aware of reports of the social media posts related to the suspected porch pirates.

“The unfortunate thing is thefts of that nature are not uncommon, says Const. Martin Cromwell, public information officer with Halifax Regional Police. “We do take it very seriously and we will continue to investigate.”

Ben Stickle, a criminal justice professor at Middle Tennessee State University, says it’s an ongoing issue happening right around the world.

“We seem to think this is a continuous issue. It went up a lot during COVID, but it’s just maintained a very high frequency of occurring all over the world. And this is a pretty serious problem. We don’t really know exactly how much of a problem it is,” says Stickle.

He says that because a lack of data has made it difficult to identify its true impacts.

Compared to the U.S., data on package thefts in Canada is sparse.

“A Safewise survey from 2023 data found that about 150 million people have been victims of this, and that one year alone cost about $16 billion in damages both to consumers and retailers. This is a very serious issue that’s very costly and is impacting a lot of people for sure,” says Stickle.

Another issue, according to Stickle, is how much smarter thieves are becoming.

A study he conducted in 2019 found people were exploring various methods. They found suspected thieves would wear uniforms disguised as delivery personnel or even pose as a salesperson.

Stickle says there’s no doubt this crime feels a lot more personal.

“Especially if you’re at a house, people come on to your property and even right up to your front door oftentimes and steal packages. That feels like quite the violation of your home,” says Stickle.

But he maintains there are things people can do to protect their homes and belongings.

“You can have your package delivered to a secure location, such as a post office or a package pickup location, maybe at your local convenience store. There are locker systems, you can have packages delivered to. If that’s not even an option, just ensuring there’s something for the package to be placed behind can be very helpful. If a thief can’t see it, they’re less likely to take it,” he says.

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