About fifty boxes of food for needy families were stolen from the Grande Guignolée des medias de la Rive-Sud warehouse in Saint-Lambert during the holiday season.
Posted at 3:28 p.m.
Traces of the theft were discovered on Thursday morning by those responsible for the collection, the fruits of which are distributed every year to around twenty organizations in the five towns of the Longueuil metropolitan area.
“Of course, when we got back we found that the boxes were broken and torn. They have caused damage,” sighs Jean-Marie Girard, head of the collection for 22 years, who was contacted on Saturday.
The fifty boxes stolen contained a variety of products – non-perishable food, medicine, diapers, new clothing – intended for families in need. The collection allowed the preparation of more than 400 of these boxes, indicates the manager.
The latter suspects the thieves of having entered the warehouse through a broken window, provided free of charge to the Grande Guignolée of the South Shore media in Saint-Lambert. “We blocked it as best we could with the means at our disposal,” describes Jean-Marie Girard.
The thieves are then said to have effortlessly opened the building's garage door from the inside to escape.
The second time in four years
Officers from the Longueuil Agglomeration Police Department were called to the scene shortly after the crime was discovered to monitor the situation, explains Jean-Marie Girard. However, the location was not equipped with surveillance cameras. “We are providing these spaces so that we do not have to start installing cameras, etc. to prevent thefts,” explains the collection manager.
“It’s always disappointing because these are all things for disadvantaged people. Did the people who needed it do that? We don’t know,” he wonders.
This is not the first time that the Grande Guignolée of South Shore media has fallen victim to theft, a similar event also occurred in 2020. This time, however, the value of the stolen goods is estimated to be around $10,000 , much higher , laments Jean-Marie Girard.
However, the news of the looting and theft sparked a large solidarity movement to replenish the organization's inventory.
Informed of the situation, the mayor of Longueuil, Catherine Fournier, launched a call for donations on Saturday. “I invite everyone who is able, and especially the companies in our area, to donate generously, be it in the form of goods or money,” she wrote in a message shared on her social networks, describing the theft as “absolutely disgusting”.