A Central Texas church that has been working to rebuild following tornado damage in April is now searching for a suspect that stole a trailer from its property.
The First Cedar Valley Baptist Church said on Thursday, July 28, an individual took off with a trailer that was being stored on its property and being used for the church's construction.
"Many of you have heard the saying "Disasters bring out the best in people" and, for the most part, that's accurate," said the church in a Facebook post on Tuesday. "Unfortunately, disasters also tend to bring out the worse in some people, and sadly we've seen that firsthand now."
According to the church, the suspect approached the property on FM-2843 from the I-35 direction.
They turned off their headlights before pulling onto the driveway and used bolt cutters to cut a lock on the trailer before lowering it onto their vehicle, said First Cedar Valley Baptist Church.
"This person was on our property for less than 3 minutes, and took off with something that someone had worked hard for," said the post.
The church said it is asking for anyone who may recognize the truck or the driver to come forward. The truck appears to be a black or dark blue 2009 or newer Ram 1500-2500, with a black grille, fog lights, and running boards, according to the post.
"If you needed to borrow a trailer, you could've just come and asked us, and we'd have had no problem finding one for you to use. If you took it to sell it because you needed the money, a simple phone call or message to us would have been all it took for us to do everything we could to help you.
We understand times are tough, but stealing is not the answer and we will pray that God works on your heart and carries you away from this path. If you wish to return the trailer, please contact us so we can arrange it."
Anyone with information is asked to call the First Cedar Valley Baptist Church at 254-307-7472, contact the Bell County Sheriff's Department at 254-933-5400, or contact Bell County Crime Stoppers at 254-526-TIPS (8477).
