Toronto man with stage 4 cancer pleads for return of stolen rollerblades used to get to hospital
A Toronto man with stage 4 cancer is desperate to get the rollerblades he uses to travel to the hospital back after they were stolen from his car.
Joe Soares said he last rode his blades to Princess Margaret Hospital Friday morning. When he got home, he said he placed them in the front passenger seat area of his grey van parked outside his west-end home on St. Helen’s Avenue.
Monday morning, when he returned to the van to go back to the hospital for his eighteenth and final radiation treatment, he said the rollerblades were gone.
“Tears came out of my eyes, that’s how I felt,” Soares told CTV News Toronto Tuesday.
Soares’ Bauer roller blades with neon wheels didn’t come cheap, but getting them back isn’t about the money.
“[They give me] freedom, encouragement. Knowing that I’m 64 and I can do it. I show up at the hospital and they look at me like I’m crazy, you what I mean? It’s just a great feeling to have.”
Soares believes the blades were taken between midday Friday and Monday morning, and has filed a police report in the hopes of getting them back.
Toronto police said without any witnesses or video it can be more difficult to recover property. So far, no video has surfaced.
On the left, Soares can be seen in his rollerblades. On the right, he can be seen beside his van. (Soares, Beth Macdonell)
Police said when there is a break and enter officers may investigate further for fingerprints and other evidence to identify a suspect. However, Soare’s vehicle does not appear to have been tampered with.
Soares said it was obvious somebody was in his van. Items were disturbed and he found a coffee from 7-11 inside the cup holder.
Soares doesn’t know his latest prognosis. He was diagnosed one year ago and said doctors initially gave him 15 months to live. He hopes to learn more about his condition after an upcoming CT scan, but says he feels stronger than ever.
“I’m not dying. I’m going anywhere. I got to take care of my grandchildren and make sure they have what I didn’t have when I was a young kid.”
It would mean the world to him to have his rollerblades returned, he said.
“They’re mine. I mean, please give them back to me. That’s all I ask, somehow, someway.”
Since CTV News Toronto reported Soares’ story, hundreds of people have contacted him to give support and offer to buy him a new pair of rollerblades.
Soares said he’s grateful to everyone for their kind offers but simply can’t accept. He asks anyone who would like to help to donate money to Princess Margaret Hospital, the Hospital for Sick Children or another charity.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Federal government grants B.C.'s request to recriminalize hard drugs in public spaces
The federal government is granting British Columbia's request to recriminalize hard drugs in public spaces, nearly two weeks after the province asked to end its pilot project early over concerns of public drug use.
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
Stormy Daniels took the witness stand Tuesday at Donald Trump's hush money trial, describing for jurors a sexual encounter the porn actor says she had with him in 2006 that resulted in her being paid off to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
MPs agree Canadian gov't should improve new disability benefit
The federal government needs to safeguard the incoming Canada Disability Benefit from clawbacks and do more to ensure it actually meets the stated aim of lifting people living with disabilities out of poverty, MPs from all parties agree.
King Charles too busy to see son Prince Harry during U.K. trip
Prince Harry will not be seeing his father King Charles during his current visit to Britain as the monarch will be too busy, Harry's spokesperson said on Tuesday.
Boy Scouts of America changing name for first time in 114 years, aiming for inclusivity
The Boy Scouts of America is changing its name for the first time in its 114-year history and will become Scouting America. It's a significant shift as the organization emerges from bankruptcy following a flood of sexual abuse claims and seeks to focus on inclusion.
opinion Tom Mulcair: Trudeau's handling of Poilievre's 'wacko' House turfing a clear sign of Liberal desperation
When Speaker Greg Fergus tossed out Pierre Poilievre from the House last week, "those of us who have experience as parliamentarians simply couldn't believe our eyes," writes former NDP leader Tom Mulcair in his column for CTVNews.ca
Liberal government not immune from auto thefts: 48 vehicles stolen in recent years
Documents tabled in the House of Commons this week show 48 government vehicles were stolen between January 2016 and February of this year, most of them in Ontario.
CFL suspends Argos QB Chad Kelly at least nine games following investigation
The CFL has suspended Toronto Argonauts quarterback Chad Kelly at least nine games for violating the league's gender-based violence policy.