Porch pirate steals vital medical supplies from child: APD

Austin police search for porch pirate

The Austin Police Department is asking for help finding a porch pirate who stole medical supplies from a child in need.

AUSTIN, Texas - The Austin Police Department is asking for help finding a porch pirate.

Police said on June 15, around 1:15 p.m., a person was seen stealing two packages from a front porch at a home in the 2500 block of Zach Scott Street. The packages had vital medical supplies needed by a child.

The person was described as a young Hispanic man with short hair. He was last seen wearing a yellow Chicago Bulls hat, white shirt, black basketball shorts, and pink bracelets.

Police said the person also had a scripture tattoo on the inner left wrist and forearm and an elbow ditch tattoo on the right arm.

MORE STORIES:

Renee, who did not want to give her last name, says her 3 and a half year old son has a condition that affects his mobility and food digestion.

She says the packages included feeding bags, formula, and syringes.

A neighbor was going to pick up the packages for Renee's family, but the boxes were taken by the porch pirate about 45 minutes after they were delivered. Renee says porch pirates are a huge problem in Mueller.

"There was a sense of violation, a level of frustration, because this is not just a nuisance for us. How am I going to feed my kid in 48 hours without the necessary supplies?" Renee said.

Image 1 of 2

▼

Luckily, they were able to find replacements, and the company hasn't charged for the stolen supplies.

"This person has no idea. My guess is that they just thought they were stealing average Joe boxes off of someone's front porch. In our case, these are actually vital for our kid to have food in him and to live his life," Renee said.

She says she's concerned about families who might not be so lucky.

"I feel for those families and realize that we're in a privileged position to have the time to even address this or to have the extra cash to pay to try to get what we need covered until we can get a replacement," she said.

As for her message to the suspect, "I would like to meet them and just be like, 'can I hear your story? What led you to these choices that you are currently making?' As a follower of Jesus, I forgive them, that's a given, but I am curious as to what led them to that," she said.

Anyone with any information may submit a tip anonymously through the Capital Area Crime Stoppers Program by visiting austincrimestoppers.org or by calling 512-472-8477. A reward of up to $1,000 may be available for any information that leads to an arrest.