Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northern BC

‘Extremely disappointing’: Big Brothers Big Sister’s van vandalized

Jul 22, 2021 | 5:07 PM

PRINCE GEORGE – On Tuesday night Big Brothers Big Sisters discovered that one of their vans had been vandalized.

“One of the gas tanks on our van was drilled – some of the gas was stolen and unfortunately the rest of the gas had leaked into the parking lot,” said Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northern BC Executive Director, Tim Bennett.

Without their van in service, the not-for-profit is needing to be creative in how they shuttle their youth and community members to events.

“It is really disappointing that someone would take advantage of Big Brothers. They are a very good not-for-profit organization and this is hitting them hard both financially and emotionally,” said Prince George RCMP Sgt. Kyle Ushock.

According to the Prince George RCMP, as gas prices rise they see a jump in gas thefts.

“We see more when fuel prices go up and unfortunately individuals take advantage of vehicles that are unattended for long periods of time,” continued Ushock.

Ushock added, that stealing gas can in fact be life-threatening.

“It is extremely dangerous, not only for the individual stealing the fuel but could potentially lead to an explosion of that vehicle,” said Ushock.

Big Brothers Big Sisters says that they have already received donations from the community to help cover what insurance doesn’t in order to get their van back on the road.

“A huge thank you to the community for all the messages and support – it just warms my heart to see how the community responds when something needless and tragic happens,” continued Bennett.

The RCMP suggests parking your vehicle in a well-lit area and if you do see any suspicious activity near your car, report it to police.