Arrests have been made in a slew of thefts of goods from autos in the parking lot at Sherway Gardens Mall.
Two men are before the courts after being charged for staking out vehicles for goods in an ongoing Sherway theft ring.
Police say the thieves watched as shoppers purchased expensive Apple Store computers which were stored in their vehicles in the lot.
Apple products are much sought after by thieves, police say.
The crooks then followed the vehicles from Sherway to their destinations, where the cars were broken into and the expensive electronic goods were stolen.
Officers from 22 Division said from December 6 to January 28, they responded to a number of calls from theft from vehicles in the parking lot of sprawling mall.
“People purchased computers from the Apple Store and were followed to their cars,” according to police. “As they drove away, they were followed to other destinations.”
They cars were then broken into and computers stolen.
Officers were in the Sherway area on January 28 when they followed two men who they allege were following a patron from the mall.
“A short distance away, as the victims left their vehicle, the men approached the vehicle with a tool designed to break the car window,” police said in a release.
Jerson Arley Sanchez, and Nicholas Chaparro Forero, both 24, of Toronto, face 17 charges ranging from mischief to attempted theft and other offences.
They appeared in court at Old City Hall on January 29.
Toronto Police 22 Division Community Response Unit is reminding the public to always be aware of their surroundings and not to leave recent purchases unattended in their vehicle.
If anyone has experienced an event similar to this after a recent purchase, they are asked to contact police and file a report.
Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 416-808-2200, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-TIPS (8477), online at www.222tips.com.