Image: Tony Gore / Wyatt (left) and Naomi Gore of Chilliwack are pictured in their ringette gear. Their dad, longtime Chilliwack resident Tony Gore, says over $500 of their ringette gear was stolen from right in front of them at a Langley retail store. Langley RCMP are investigating the theft. Tony says he's learned a valuable lesson about leaving your stuff unattended at retail stores. 

By Mike Vanden Bosch

Theft from Langley retail store

Chilliwack resident learns valuable lesson after his kids’ ringette gear was stolen – right in front of him

Apr 15, 2024 | 11:43 AM

CHILLIWACK — Chilliwack resident Tony Gore wishes he had listened to his wife when they went shopping over a week ago at a Langley sporting goods store, only to have over $500 of his kids’ ringette gear stolen from right in front of him.

Gore, a longtime Chilliwack resident affiliated with the Gore Brothers development company, says he and his wife were shopping for ringette gear for their son Wyatt at Sports Replay in Langley on Saturday, April 6. He says he was waiting for store staff to do an adjustment on his son’s helmet when an older male made off with the goods right inside the store.

“An elderly gentleman came into the store and stole an entire bag full of stuff from under my nose,” Gore said. “It was caught on camera. I look like a dumb ass playing on my phone and talking to the kids, as the guy nonchalantly walks out with my bag full of purchased merchandise.”

Image: Tony Gore / Longtime Chilliwack resident Tony Gore says his kids’ ringette gear was stolen from him right inside a Langley store while he was looking on his phone.

Video shared by Gore shows him looking down at his phone as two men mill around the store before one of them, described as an older man, casually picks up two Superstore bags and exits the store in a normal fashion.

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Image: Provided by Tony Gore / An image of the alleged thief at Sports Replay in Langley who grabbed two bags of brand new ringette gear belonging to Tony Gore.

Gore describes the store environment in Sports Replay as being “very busy with a lot of hustle and bustle” on a typical Saturday, with people upbeat and excited about purchasing their equipment.

Feeling a bit sheepish about the whole thing, the father of two young kids says he imparted a valuable lesson to his children.

“I kind of spun it into a life lesson for the kids: Never judge a book by its cover,” Gore said. “Even though this individual looked like a harmless elderly gentleman, you can’t judge a book by its cover. Stranger danger, that kind of thing. And we always have to be cautious around strangers.”

He says he wishes he had heeded his wife Cheryl’s advice about keeping a close eye on their stuff. Lesson learned, he said.

“Cheryl did tell me to watch our stuff,” he said. “And I told her, ‘Come on, it’ll be fine.’ And then it got stolen from under my nose. I was just shy of holding the door open for him.”

If there was a bit of an upside, Sports Replay found out about the ordeal and gave him 50 per cent off all the new stuff that he had to purchase.

“I’m hoping my credit card covers it but that is in the review process with them,” Gore said.

If the old adage is true about a happy wife translating to a happy life, Gore recommends that spouses abide by that motto.

“My advice would be keep your valuables close,” he said. “And always listen to your wife.”

Gore says he has reported the theft to Langley RCMP; the Langley RCMP file number is 2024-10597.