Authorities have informed that a Montreal teenager was the target of a pickpocket who made off with the victim's life-sustaining insulin pump.

The Montreal Gazette has reported that McGill University student Doug Chalke was in downtown Montreal Thursday celebrating the Montreal Canadiens' hockey victory over the Washington Capitals when the thief made off with his wallet and the medical device.

The Gazette also said that Chalke's mother has appealed to anyone finding the pump, resembling a pager with a catheter attached, to call the 1-800 number printed on the device.

Leslie Chalke said, "That machine keeps him alive. As a parent, I find this very hard."

She said Medtronic, the company that makes the $7,000 pump, promised to send a loaner to Doug Chalke Friday.

It couldn't come too soon, she said.

She further said that her son, who has Type-1 diabetes, has already had to go to the hospital to get an insulin boost. (With Inputs from Agencies)