Residents urged to check doorframes after 10 break‑ins across Vancouver and Burnaby; similar incidents in Edmonton and Ontario.
Vancouver Police are warning residents about a method of targeting apartment units that investigators say is unlike anything they’ve seen in recent local break‑and‑enter cases.
Between August 9 and Dec. 24, 2025, thieves broke into 10 apartment units across five residential buildings in Vancouver and one in Burnaby. According to police, the suspects gained access to buildings overnight and used hot glue as a way to determine whether anyone was home.
Sergeant Stan Dy of the VPD Property Crime Unit said the suspects applied a thin strand of hot glue between the top corner of a suite door and its frame. If a resident returned and opened the door, the glue would snap. If the glue remained intact, it signaled to the suspects that the occupant was away. They would then return days later and break into units where the glue had not been disturbed.
Investigators believe the suspects focused on older apartment buildings with weaker security features, such as unsecured stairwell doors or a lack of surveillance cameras.
Police say similar glue‑based targeting techniques have been reported in Ontario and Edmonton.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the Vancouver Police Property Crime tip line at 604‑717‑0610.
