A group of armed thieves stole a Canada Goose jacket from a bicyclist in the middle of the day in Northwest D.C., police say.
Surveillance video shows the moment a car blocked the cyclist's path on Belt Street NW on Tuesday, Dec. 12. Three suspects then jumped out, one of them armed with a gun. In a few seconds, they made off with his Canada Goose jacket and drove off.
D.C. police said they're searching for a white 2013 Hyundai Sonata with Maryland tags.
The daytime theft jarred one parent whose kids attend a preschool nearby.
“Regardless of the neighborhood, regardless of if it’s in a school zone, and regardless of the time of day – like, as you mentioned, this was 3:45 in the afternoon. They’re just getting bolder and bolder,” Jeremy Harrell said.
Thieves have been targeting people wearing the expensive winter coats worth more than $1,000 each since last winter.
During a 48-hour stretch in late November, police said there were three robberies and an attempted robbery of expensive coats in Northwest.
Earlier in the year, thieves stole jackets from a couple walking around Dupont Circle. They were visting D.C. from out of state.
In January and early February, police reported that thieves were targeting Howard University and George Washington University students who had the jackets.
D.C. has seen a 68% increase in robberies compared to this time last year, according to data from the Metropolitan Police Department.
Canada Goose coats range in price from more than $1,000 to almost $1,800. D.C. police suspect some of the stolen coats are being resold online.
