From Whistler to Facebook Marketplace: RCMP crack alleged resort rental theft scam

In late 2024, a series of supposed skiers booked equipment from Whistler rental stores.

The skis and poles were never returned. The renters' names were allegedly aliases. And the credit cards used to secure the bookings turned out to be fraudulent.

According to court documents obtained by CBC News, the stolen equipment later surfaced on a Facebook Marketplace account linked to a Burnaby man, who police claim hired couriers through social media to travel to Whistler and pick up the rentals that he then sold online. 

Burnaby RCMP declined to comment on the case, which is still under investigation.

CBC is not naming the suspect, because no criminal charges have been filed against him. His name is contained in a warrant to search a storage locker in a condo building near Metrotown, where police claim he met undercover officers to swap stolen skis and boots for cash.

In a document sworn to obtain the search warrant — filed in Vancouver provincial court — RCMP say they believe the suspect is responsible for the theft of thousands of dollars worth of cutting edge ski gear. 

The documents detail an investigation that was sparked when staff at Whistler Blackcomb Rentals made complaints in December about someone failing to return equipment. 

A loss prevention manager alerted police to the fact that the serial numbers on some of the stolen items could be seen in ads for ski equipment linked to one Facebook Marketplace profile. On others, the serial numbers could not be seen as the items were placed against a wall.

The rentals allegedly followed a familiar pattern. 

"All the suspected fraudulent rental forms would have the exact same information for the following: i. Age; ii. Height; iii. Weight; iv. Skier type; v. Shoe size; and vi. Suggested length," the warrant says.

Using those specifications, Whistler RCMP were able to flag a number of suspicious rentals over the course of three days, and intercept three people who claimed they had been hired to act as couriers.

One of the men told police he "answered an ad on social media that offered a fee and gas money to go to Whistler and pick up skis and bring them back to Burnaby."

"[He] has not met the poster of the ad and only spoke over an application called 'Wechat,'" the warrant reads.

Another suspect claimed "he took a job from a Chinese social media site that required him to pick up five sets of skis from five different locations in Whistler."