Shillong, October 13: The Canadian police are actively searching for a suspect following a series of break-ins at three Hindu temples in Ontario.
As per IANS, these incidents all occurred in the early morning hours of October 8 in the cities of Pickering and Ajax, according to a statement from the Durham Police.
The suspect, who was captured on surveillance footage, is described as approximately five feet nine inches tall and weighing around 200 lbs. He was seen wearing a blue surgical mask, a black jacket with a tightly zipped hood, green ‘camo’ cargo pants, and green running shoes.
On the night of October 8, around 12:45 a.m., officers responded to a break-in at a religious temple on Bayly Street and Krosno Boulevard in Pickering. The suspect was recorded entering the temple and stealing a significant amount of cash from the donation boxes before fleeing the scene.
Approximately 45 minutes later, at around 1:30 a.m., police responded to another break-in at a different temple in Pickering on Brock Road and Dersan Street. A resident reported that a male had broken in through a window and attempted to steal a safe containing donated cash. However, the suspect was unsuccessful and fled before the police arrived. Surveillance footage confirmed that he was the same individual who had committed the earlier break-in.
Around 2:50 am, the same suspect broke into a religious temple in Ajax, located on Westney Road South and Bayly Street West, where he stole a substantial amount of cash from a donation box.
This incident follows the targeting of at least two temples in the Greater Toronto Area in the previous month: the Chintpurni Temple in Brampton on September 9 and the Rameshwar Mandir in Caledon on September 18.
The Rameshwar Mandir has assured the public of its commitment to cooperating with the ongoing police investigation and prioritizing the safety and security of its premises and visitors. Notably, several Hindu temples in the Greater Toronto Area were reportedly robbed in a span of ten days last year.