KILLEEN, Texas — A Killeen couple is out thousands of dollars after having a truck and tools stolen from their property. They are just one of many stolen vehicle cases in the Killeen area this December.
It’s a common story across central Texas. Jennifer Bannister told 6 news her husband’s white Dodge Ram was stolen from the back of their small farm on Dec. 12. The truck was parked far from the road with the keys inside. She said the thief was willing to walk to the back of their property to drive it off, along with whatever tools were nearby.
“We’ve been a farm for a long time, and it was way off the road. In hindsight taking the keys would have saved a whole lot of grief,” Bannister said. “They loaded up everything with a plug or a battery that could possibly be sellable, loaded it in my truck and drove off with it.”
Bannister said they have heard nothing back from the Killeen Police Department on the case but it turns out her case is just one of many. According to the LexisNexis Community Crime Map, Killeen had 24 motor vehicle thefts in December alone and a total of 300 motor vehicle thefts in 2019. Killeen PD and other police departments have put out reminders on social media for people to lock their cars and not leave their keys inside.
The Bannisters said they lost several thousand dollars in tools, but things could have been even worse. Banister said they left a checkbook in the truck and the thieves tried to take full advantage.
“Monday someone went into our bank and took a fake ID and forged a check and tried to empty my bank account,” Banister said. “She (the teller) looked at the bank account and realized there was not enough money in the bank account she (the thief) was trying to empty.”
Bannister said the bank teller called her to see if she and her husband wanted to add money to the account to cover the check, which alerted her to the transaction and allowed her to stop it. She said the thief asked for just a few dollars over the full balance of the account.
“Nine dollars of greed is what saved me,” Banister said. “The next step would have been giving her (the thief) my money.”
Bannister said she is still out thousands of dollars in stolen tools. Anyone who has property stolen can report the serial numbers with reportit.leadsonline.com.
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