PEMBROKE PARK, Fla. (WSVN) — A South Florida business owner is reeling, one day after cameras captured a man breaking into a work van filled with equipment and tools in broad daylight and driving away.
Steve Shea, the owner of Action Air in Pembroke Park, said his family-run business has served the community for 50 years, and — until Sunday afternoon — they had never had a van stolen.
Surveillance video captured the subject walking up to the vehicle parked in the front of the business, located at 3240 West Hallandale Beach Blvd., at around 3:45 p.m.
The burglar is then seen using a screwdriver to pop a lock. “In, like, 10 seconds, he’s got the door open,” said Shea.
Once inside, Shea said, it took the perpetrator several minutes to break the steering column. He is then seen pulling out of the parking spot and heading east on Hallandale Beach Boulevard.
“He just violates everything that you work so hard for,” said Shea.
In addition to the cost of the van, the business owner said, the equipment inside is valued between $10,000 and $12,000. “Some of the gas is $25 a pound, so if you have a tank, it’s $600, and there’s usually four or five tanks there,” he said. “There’s probably about $10,000 worth of equipment and materials inside the truck. That all needs to be replaced now, and now I need to buy a new truck. A new truck is $30,000.”
Shea said the theft comes as a blow for the air conditioning repair company. “It’s about a $40,000 hit. For a small businessman, it’s a lot of money,” he said.
The owner is offering $500 for information leading to an arrest. “Yeah, I want to see him go to prison, you know, before he does this to somebody else,” said Shea. “It’s terrible.”
The Broward Sheriff’s Office is investigating the theft.
If you have any information that could help investigators, call Broward County Crime Stoppers at 954-493-TIPS. Remember, you can always remain anonymous, and you may be eligible for a $3,500 reward.
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