Here’s another sign of the fraying of the fabric of American society.
At this time of the year, with Americans frantically mailing Christmas gifts to their families and friends across the country, thefts of packages delivered to the front doors of homes are increasing.
Two days ago, I did a post about a Las Vegas homeowner surprising a package thief with a box of dog poop. The post today is not as light-hearted.
Melanie Michael reports for WFLA Channel 8 that on Friday night, Dec. 4, 2015, a woman in Lakeland, Florida, was caught on surveillance camera stealing presents from her neighbor’s house.
But the identity of the woman shocked even the county sheriff, Grady Judd, because the package thief, Dana Hagar, is none other than the wife of a Haines City police officer. Even more bizarre is the fact that the neighbor Hagar stole from is another cop.
The (Lakeland) Ledger reports that Hagar’s husband is Haines City Police Sgt. Kevin Hagar.
The camera caught Dana Hagar, holding a black plastic bag, casually and brazenly strolling up the driveway to her neighbor’s home at 10 p.m. on a Friday night. The neighbor was home because their car was parked in the driveway.
Hagar bends down, picks up the two packages in front of the door, and puts them in the plastic bag. Then, just as casually, she walks away with her loot.
The packages were meant for the neighbors’ 2-year-old daughter.
The neighbors posted the video from the surveillance camera to Facebook, which was viewed nearly 50,000 times.
No doubt, the video posted to Facebook prompted Dana Hagar to return the packages early Monday morning around 4:30 a.m., placing them on the porch already opened.
By then, it was too little, too late, because one of the people who saw the video was none other than the wife of Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd.
Later that day, Dec. 7, Dana Hagar was busted on burglary charges and booked into the Polk County jail.
According to Sheriff Judd, it’s not the first time Hagar has been caught. She had been arrested for shoplifting and was on probation when she committed the package theft. Judd said, “The fact that she’s a cop’s wife is shocking, the fact that she stole from another cop’s wife is shocking. In law enforcement, we are held to a higher standard in the way we live. It’s important. Here’s the word. We’re watching the porch pirates, the cops’ wives are watching the porch pirates. Facebook is watching the porch pirates. We’re gonna put you in jail and you’ll stay in our jail where you won’t need any presents.”
Homeowners in the upscale Lakeland neighborhood say it’s not the first time they’ve been hit by other porch pirates. Now, they’re arming themselves with home surveillance cameras. Sheriff Judd warns people to guard your presents. “Criminals are watching you and waiting,” he said.
~Eowyn