Woman disguised as a janitor wanted in series of ATM thefts across B.C.'s Fraser Valley

A woman dressed as a janitor, complete with a vacuum cleaner mounted on her back, is wanted on suspicion of stealing large amounts of cash from ATMs in banks across B.C.'s Upper Fraser Valley.

According to Chilliwack RCMP, a series of four break-ins and ATM thefts involving the same suspect were reported at major banks in July 2021. In all four crimes, the suspect was wearing a bright blue collared shirt, dark pants, a dark baseball cap, a medical mask, latex gloves and a backpack-style vacuum cleaner.

Mounties then worked with the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre (FINTRAC) to identify suspects through several suspicious transactions, according to a statement from the RCMP.

Police searched a home in Nanaimo earlier this month and seized "a large quantity of cash and several high-value assets believed to be purchased through the proceeds of crime," it said.

But investigators still haven't identified the suspect seen on surveillance videos of the thefts or the vehicle she was driving.

The woman is described as about five feet tall, and the vehicle is described as a dark-coloured pickup.

Anyone with information is asked to call Chilliwack RCMP's property crime unit at 604-792-4611.