2 arrested, third sought after nearly $100K swiped in Calgary distraction thefts

The Calgary Police Service confirms two men have been arrested and a warrant has been issued for a third suspect in connection with a recent string of distraction thefts.
According to police, 12 distraction theft cases were reported from late January into early February and the victims lost nearly $100,000 combined.
The accused allegedly watched and noted their personal identification numbers of the victims while they were making purchases with their debit or credit cards at major retail stores in the Calgary area. The men would then approach the victims and distract them while stealing the physical financial cards.
With the correct PINs memorized, the stolen debit or credit cards would then be used to withdraw cash or make fraudulent purchases.
Two of the suspects were arrested on March 9 and charged in connection with all 12 cases.
Florian Paun, 42, and Ion Tirna, 55, each face 29 charges related to theft or fraud including:
- Theft of credit card;
- Defrauding a person; and
- Possession of stolen property.
CPS officials say stolen credit cards belonging to a victim who had yet to report the theft of their cards were found during the arrest.
Paun and Tirna are scheduled to appear in court later this month.
Warrants have been issued for 24-year-old Petrisor Adrian Marior on 29 offences.
The wanted man is described as:
- Between 175 and 183 centimetres (5'9" and 6') tall;
- Having a medium-to-heavy build;
- Having brown hair; and
- Having brown eyes
Anyone who has been the victim of distraction theft or has information regarding Marior's whereabouts is asked to contact the Calgary Police Service non-emergency line at 403-266-1234. Anonymous tips may be submitted to Crime Stoppers.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories

U.S. assassination attempt charges 'confirm' Trudeau's claims about India had 'real substance,' former national security advisers say
The indictment of an Indian national for the attempted assassination of a Sikh separatist and dual U.S.-Canadian national 'validates' Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's allegations that the Indian government may have been involved in the killing of a Canadian citizen as having 'real substance,' according to two of Canada's former national security advisers.
Bonnie Crombie wins Ontario Liberal leadership after 3 rounds of voting
Ontario Liberals have selected Bonnie Crombie, a three-term big city mayor and former MP who boasts that she gets under the skin of Premier Doug Ford, as their next leader to go head to head with the premier in the next provincial election.
Trump calls Biden the 'destroyer' of democracy despite his own efforts to overturn 2020 election
Former U.S. president Donald Trump on Saturday attempted to turn the tables on his likely rival in November, President Joe Biden, arguing that the man whose election victory Trump tried to overturn is "the destroyer of American democracy."
Search for runaway kangaroo in Ontario continues
The search continues for the kangaroo that is hopping around somewhere in Ontario after it escaped zoo handlers from a transport truck Thursday night.
What was a hospital like in medieval times? Researchers analyzed 400 skeletons to find out
In medieval times, hospitals took care of the 'poor and infirm,' but how were inhabitants selected and what were their lives like? Researchers analyzed 400 skeletons to find out.
James Webb Telescope confirms existence of massive dusty galaxy from early universe
New observations from the James Webb Space Telescope have confirmed the existence of a massive, dusty, star-forming galaxy which was first spotted years ago by a ground telescope, but was completely invisible to the Hubble Space Telescope.
Rocky planets may be able to form under more high-stress scenarios than previously known: study
A study of one of the most extreme, radiation-heavy environments in the universe has found that it might be possible for rocky planets comprised of water, carbon and other familiar molecules to form under far more intense circumstances than previously believed.
Teen girls are being victimized by deepfake nudes. One family is pushing for more protections
A mother and her 14-year-old daughter are advocating for better protections for victims after AI-generated nude images of the teen and other female classmates were circulated at a high school in New Jersey.
7.6 magnitude earthquake strikes off the southern Philippines and a tsunami warning is issued
A powerful earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.6 struck Saturday off the cost of the southern Philippines island of Mindanao and Philippine authorities issued a tsunami warning.