A brazen group of thieves in Hammond, Indiana used a tow truck to steal six donated cars, leaving a non-profit without the funding it needed to expand services to local rising artists.
On Monday, Antonio Alvarez, owner of Sold By Offer Auction and Title Services says thieves used a tow truck to steal six donated vehicles from his lot on Hohman Avenue.
The donated vehicles were going to be auctioned off to raise funds for the non-profit “Excite Labs,” which gives rising artists space and resources for their work.
“We’ve been here for 10 years, never had any issues, for the most part,” said Alvarez. “If they knocked on my door, I would have given them the car for free.”
Alvarez says the six used vehicles that were stolen were valued at approximately $100,000.
Unfortunately, just last Thursday, Alvarez says thieves stole 600 solar panels that the non-profit was getting ready to install to save on energy costs. That loss is also valued at around $100,000, according to Alvarez.
“They found the panels in a Chicago Heights scrapyard that accepted the stolen goods,” said Alvarez. “It’s a jump to go from $100,000 loss to another $100,000 loss, but we’ll see what happens.”
Alvarez says he’s trying to get additional footage of the auto thefts to provide better descriptions.
Although a copy of the police report was provided to NBC 5, Hammond Police have not made any additional comments on the case.
