Ontario woman gets back at parcel thieves by filling package with cat droppings

Laurie Pringle, who lives on a busy street in downtown Hamilton, is no stranger to theft. Over the past few years, a number of parcels delivered from companies such as Amazon have gone missing from her front porch after being delivered. Her neighbours' parcels have also been targeted by thieves over the years, and the community has become increasingly disgruntled over the issue.

"At least every other month something was stolen," Pringle claimed.

It was only recently that Pringle decided that she would take action to get back at the thieves. "I thought that these guys should be on Santa’s naughty list, and I thought maybe if I don’t have any coal—I can contribute something I do have," she said.

Pringle took an empty Amazon box from her dwelling and filled the box with used cat litter. After placing the box on her front porch, it took less than an hour before her security camera caught a thief tucking the box under his jacket, bringing the used cat litter home with him.

"I’m kind of sad I didn’t get to see [the thief's reaction]. If I could figure out a remote camera to put inside – I would love that," Pringle said. "I guess everyone has gone through this and annoyed by it and I think they are just happy to see someone get their comeuppance."

According to FedEx, one-third of Canadians have experienced package theft in 2020, up from one quarter in 2019 as more Canadians rely on delivery services during the coronavirus pandemic.

Police, meanwhile, have encouraged recipients of parcels and packages to consider alternative methods to ensure the safety of their packages.

"What we recommend is either having a designated drop area or arranging times for someone to be home to receive those packages to try to reduce those kinds of incidences," said Toronto Police spokeswoman Michelle Flannery.