Prolific offender charged in Vancouver theft of wigs destined for kids with cancer
Posted March 6, 2019 10:17 am.
Last Updated March 6, 2019 3:07 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – A 52-year-old man with a long rap sheet going back decades has been charged in connection with the theft of 150 wigs that were slated for kids with cancer at BC Children’s Hospital.
The wigs were The wigs were stolen on Sept. 7, 2018 from Eva and Company Wigs on West Broadway in Vancouver.
“This involved DNA evidence, this involved video canvasing, quite an extensive investigation so a lot of praise goes to our investigators that worked very hard to bring this case forward to Crown counsel,” said Sgt. Jason Robillard.
Martin Weigelt, 52, remains in custody. According to police, he is considered “one of the city’s most prolific property offenders.”
“Weigelt has an extensive criminal past with more than 100 criminal convictions dating back to 1987. The investigation remains ongoing,” Robillard added.
On Friday, NEWS 1130 learned of the arrest. Frances Rae, who works at the store, told us the news is a huge relief.
She says they struggled to make wigs for those in need following the theft, but staff are grateful for support from the community.
“Little kids were phoning me going, ‘We just hope that you’re okay. We’ll wait for our wigs.’ I’m like, really?” she said. “People were really nice.”
So far, 66 of the stolen wigs have been recovered.
WATCH: Wigs For Children With Cancer Stolen
Staff at the store have been working to re-make the wigs, but despite their efforts, many children didn’t get their wigs until December. It takes about two months and at least $2,200 to make each wig.
“We felt so bad that those kids’ wigs were taken and a horrible thing to do. We were just really happy that someone was caught,” Rae said.
RELATED: VPD recovers some stolen wigs that were made for kids with cancer
The store has beefed up security, including a video surveillance system.
The VPD is still looking for more information about the missing wigs. If you can help, you’re asked to call the VPD’s property crime investigators at 604-717-0610 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
More to come
– With files from Estefania Duran, Sonia Aslam and Lauren Boothby
