What an IDIOT... (part 2)

I reported earlier about the truck I heard crash in the construction project behind the house. Well, the truck stayed there all night last night and all day today. At 4:15, I got in the shower to get ready for church. I looked out the window and the truck was still there. When we left for church at 4:45, it was gone. We wondered to each other how the guy was going to explain what happened. We didn't have to wonder for long...

Driving down our street, the front grill of the truck was laying in the middle of the street. A little further through the neighborhood, there was the truck, sitting in the middle of the street - abandoned. Lovely. It appears that my suspicions yesterday might be playing themselves out (why do you think I took the photos...) Being an insurance guy, you think this sort of thing.

Well, I called the Sheriff's department, and the deputy that normally patrols our neighborhood comes within 5 minutes. I like this guy. I make it a point to stop and talk to him when I see him out and about. Of course, my suspicions are correct. The guy reported the truck stolen last night, about 2 hours after he wrecked it. He apparently moved it this afternoon so it wouldn't be at his job site tomorrow morning when the bosses get there. The Sheriff's deputy wasn't amused with this guy's resourcefulness.

The deputy went to the job site and noted where the truck crashed yesterday (paint on the wall, pieces of the headlights on the ground) to verify what I said I saw. He's going to come by tomorrow and collect a disk with the photos I took of the truck crashed at the job site. He asked me if I could pick the guy out of a lineup. Unfortunately, I don't think I could.

As a consequence of doing the "right thing", my family is now on a sort of elevated alert status. We'll likely be doing a "drive by" at our house before pulling in to make sure it is safe and no one waiting to bother us. When parking in the garage, we'll close the door before unlocking the doors and getting out of the truck. We'll also be in the truck with the doors locked before opening the door to leave. It's a shame that you have to worry about possible reprisals from being an honest citizen and reporting crime when you see it.