The Vancouver Police Department (VPD) advises residents to inspect their apartment doors for any sign of glue since thieves have used the adhesive to help them break into apartments in the city.

Police are investigating a series of so-called break-and-enters between August and December last year, which all have one thing in common: residue of glue on the apartment’s outside doorframe.

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“These suspects would gain entry into the building during the middle of the night and apply hot glue in the top corner of apartment unit doors, stretching it between the door and the frame,” said VPD Property Crime Sgt. Stan Dy.

“When building residents return home and open the door, the strand of glue is broken. If the residents are away, the strand of glue stays intact, indicating that no one was home. The suspects then returned within a few days and broke into suites that had intact glue.”

The VPD launched investigations into 10 break-ins that have occurred in five residential apartment buildings in Vancouver and one building in Burnaby.

Investigators say that the incidents occurred predominantly in older apartment buildings with limited security measures, including open stairwell doors and buildings without security cameras.

Police also add that similar break-ins where glue was used on unit doors have been reported in Ontario and Alberta.

The VPD is asking people who may have information on those break-ins to contact investigators at 604-717-0610.