Letters and parcels stolen during two break-ins at central Alberta post office

CALGARY -- Police are looking for help to track down some sticky fingered mail thieves who broke into the post office in Bowden, Alta. twice over the past seven days.

Olds RCMP were first called to the building, on 20 Avenue in Bowden, on Feb. 6 following reports that it had been broken into sometime over the previous night.

Investigators say a suspect or group of suspects gained entry to the post office through the front entrance and proceeded to break into a number of mailboxes. The thieves also got into the main office of the building.

Police say an unspecified number of pieces of mail and parcels were taken during the incident.

Officers were called to the post office again on Feb. 10 when it was discovered that thieves broke in for a second time. During this incident, the suspect or suspects got in through a public area and again stole mail.

This time, the thieves were not able to get into the main office area because of increased security measures put in place.

There is no information on how much mail was stolen during the course of both incidents.

Canada Post says its customers have been made aware of both incidents and they are working closely with the RCMP for the investigation.

It adds that anyone who is concerned about missing mail can pursue a number of different avenues to protect themselves.

"When this type of incident occurs, we ask customers who believe they have not received a specific piece of mail to contact the sender," said Hayley Magermans, media relations for Canada Post, in an email to CTV News.

"Customers who have not received an expected parcel should inform the sender, who may initiate a claim with Canada Post Customer Service. Customers concerned about identity fraud should contact the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at 1-888-495-8501. We encourage anyone who witnesses any suspicious activity to immediately inform the authorities and Canada Post Customer Service at 1-800-267-1177."

RCMP are continuing to investigate these incidents and ask anyone with information to call the Olds detachment at 403-556-3323 or your local police service. If you wish to remain anonymous, you can contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS), on line at www.p3tips.com or by using the "P3 Tips" app available through the Apple App or Google Play store.

Bowden has a population of approximately 1,200 people and is located about an hour north of Calgary.