Man’s electric wheelchair goes missing
A Victoria woman is hoping for the return of a customized electric wheelchair stolen that provided independence to her father.
Priya Diddee, 50, said the electric wheelchair belonging to her 75-year-old father, known as J.K., went missing from their apartment on Simcoe Street in James Bay. It was in a storage room used by residents for mobility scooters and other devices.
The wheelchair went missing sometime between 7 p.m. on Jan. 2 and 9:40 a.m. the next day.
J.K., short for Jugal Kishore, had both legs amputated below the knee because of complications resulting from diabetes.
He has also had a stroke, which cost him strength on his right side.
She has spent hundreds of dollars modifying the wheelchair, moving the controls, for example, to the left side so her father can use them.
“Struck down by a stroke at age 52, never able to drive a car again, which he loved, this wheelchair gave him a little freedom,” she said. “He’s accepted that it’s gone but he hopes we might get it back.”
The wheelchair retails for $6,000 new, but Priya said she bought it second-hand.
She has reported the theft to Victoria police and posted notices on social media. Someone came forward and started a fundraising me page that has raised nearly $1,100 as of Wednesday.
The “very generous person” who started the fundraising effort even found another second-hand chair, Priya said. Unfortunately, it was too small for her father.
Priya is grateful to those who have reached out, and will continue to look for a replacement so her father and mother can continue to leave their apartment during the day.
“My mum would go out with him, but she is quite frail so they didn’t go very far,” she said.
“But they would go down together in the elevator and go out for a walk in the neighbourhood,” Priya said. “My dad enjoyed the neighborhood.”