A couple from Langley is baffled, frustrated and a little frightened after someone picked their plum tree clean earlier this month.

It's not a small tree, either.

"There were hundreds of plums," said Sunnie Skoumal, who planted the Italian plum tree seven years ago as a gift to her husband Denny.

"Each branch was loaded and they were juicy and big."

Sunnie believes the thief climbed her backyard fence and spent about 40 minutes picking fruit.

She says they would have needed a ladder to reach the highest branches.

The Skoumal's bedroom window, which faces the back yard, was open the night the thief struck.

They didn't hear a thing.

"The thief was so creepy and didn't leave any plums for us," Sunnie said.

"Where did he or she get the idea that they can come here during the night and steal our plums? It boggles my mind."

The tree is more than 3.5 metres tall, so the Skoumals believe it would have taken 40 minutes to pick all of the plums. (Jesse Johnston/CBC)

"Honey. Where are the plums?"

Denny spent the summer watching the plums ripen, waiting for that one glorious moment when he'd finally get to take his first bite.

He woke up on the morning of August 14 and went to the back yard hoping for a taste.

"The first thing I noticed is there are usually some plums underneath that fall and some that are taken by raccoons or a skunk," he said.

"I noticed, huh, it's pretty clean and I looked at my wife and said, 'No plums!' Where are the plums?' I was a little shocked."

Sunnie noticed some shoe marks on her back fence and realized this wasn't the work of an animal.

That's when she called police.

The Skoumals believe the thief climbed over their back fence without anyone noticing. (Jesse Johnston/CBC)

The investigation

Langley RCMP Sgt. Alexandra Mulvihill says it's concerning that someone spent so much time in the Skoumal's yard without being noticed.

"There is a security issue there and there is a concern about people on other people's property," she said.

"I've been a member for 19 years and this is probably the first time I've seen a 'theft of plum' file."

The Skoumals are considering installing surveillance cameras to keep an eye on their fruit.

The tree only produced 12 plums last summer and they're concerned they may have missed out on their only chance at harvesting a bumper crop.

"It took almost seven years to nourish this tree," Sunnie said.

"It's a labour of love."