HIALEAH, FLA. (WSVN) - A South Florida homeowner is speaking out after, she said, a crook walked up to her front porch and made off with a package her mother had sent to her.

Friday afternoon’s theft was captured on surveillance video, but that offers little consolation to the homeowner, who asked not to be identified or show her face on camera. “It is aggravating, nerve-racking, violating, people stealing your things,” she said.

The victim of this crime that becomes all too common during the holidays said she was away from home at the time of the incident. “Yesterday, while I was at work, I got a call from my neighbor across the street letting me know he saw someone run off with the package from my front door,” she said.

As soon as she got off work, the homeowner checked the security cameras set up outside her home along West 53rd Terrace. “You can see the man drive by a few times, when the UPS truck was outside the house,” she said. “Then, once the UPS truck drove off, he parked at a neighbor’s house and kind of watched.”

But once the coast was clear, the bearded subject, seen wearing a dark short-sleeve shirt, made his move. “He came, took the package from the front door. His friend met him on the corner, and then they tried to drive off,” she said, “but once the neighbors spotted him, they reversed and took off the other way.”

The package, which was sent from her mother, is now a gift the homeowner will likely never get to see. “It’s not fair,” she said. “People work so hard to get things for their families and their friends, and someone who doesn’t care just comes up and takes it.”

She is hoping this video will help police track down and catch the package pirate. “I just want to see him get caught, and other people doing the same thing get caught,” she said. “It’s not fair. that they are just taking things that don’t belong to them. It’s not even about returning the package at this point. It’s just [about] stopping this.”

If you recognize the thief or have information on this theft that could help investigators, call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS. Remember, you can always remain anonymous, and you may be eligible for a $1,000 reward.

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