Caught on camera at the Good Sam

RUSK – The Grinch arrived early this year for a local charity, which discovered items donated for resale to help support its food pantry were removed from its property overnight Sunday by a couple driving a box truck.

“We have it on video – it happened at 1:20 a.m. (Monday) morning. They were taking items from the porch of The Good Samaritan (Thrift Store),” said Mona Burford, Good Samaritan board president. “from what I could see on the tape, they were shoving items into a big duffle bag.”

Video footage has been posted to the non-profit organization’s Facebook page, “Rusk Cares,” showing a dark-haired woman taking items. Burford described a “tall, slender man” accompanying the woman.

Burford said that initially, she did not suspect someone was stealing from the 190 W. 2nd St. property, but a comment about a playpen used to hold free items being missing led her to check footage on the Good Samaritan’s security camera.

She had last been on the property about noon Sunday, and is not sure if additional items were left on the building’s porch between then and when the video captured the action approximately 11 hours later.

“Some of the ladies (who volunteer there) said it was completely cleared off when they came in,” Burford said. “Sure enough, I looked around, and the playpen was gone.”

She does not know whether this is the first time things have been taken from the site – the greater problem is that people tend to dump furniture and large items that are not sold at the thrift store.

“It’s kind of brazen, isn’t it?” she said. “It’s very aggravating.”

Local police have been contacted about the theft.

“We’re asking people to look at the video we have on Facebook to see if they can help identify who this is,” Burford said.