BRENTWOOD, LOS ANGELES (KABC) — The search is on for thieves who stole a commercial-grade lawn mower from a landscaper in Brentwood.
Surveillance video captured the brazen theft last Thursday. Eyewitness News spoke with the owner, who is sharing his story to warn fellow landscapers.
The owner did not want us to identify him. We met him at one of his stops, where he says the lawn mower is worth about $2,500.
A brand-new one similar to the one that was stolen costs just over $3,000.
“These thieves are quick. They hop in a couple minutes, a couple seconds actually. In the video you can see they get to the car. One opens the hatch and one has the bolt cutters. They cut it and then they open the truck and after that they just load it and that’s it,” he said.
He said he and his crew noticed the two individuals driving around for a little while before parking their SUV and stealing the lawn mower.
The owner says the stolen lawn mower also has sentimental value. His father died earlier this year, and he took over his father’s route.
“These were his last purchases you know. And obviously you can replace them but obviously it’s something that he bought with his hard-earned money. I would rather keep all of his tools intact and just have them in the business,” he added.
The owner says he’s working with a Santa Monica police detective on the case. He says the detective will inform the Los Angeles Police Department about what happened while continuing to investigate.
For now, the owner is making do with an older lawn mower.
“Thankfully, thankfully, thankfully we had just fixed one of our older machines. That’s the one I have with me now,” he said.
The owner says he’s getting the word out to fellow landscapers, urging them to keep a closer eye on their equipment and take care when storing or securing it.
Anyone with information about the case is urged to call Santa Monica police Detective Perez at 424-410-0442.
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