Police Seek Suspect in Maine Battery Theft, Loader Mayhem
Cabin fever makes people do strange things. Like steal car batteries and use borrowed front-end loaders to wreak havoc in parking lots. In the middle of the night. In Bangor, Maine.
Police there are on the hunt for the individual whose nighttime shenanigans included just that, leaving a trail of destruction to the tune of thousands of dollars.
On their ever-colorful Facebook page, the department details the events of February 10:
At 3:21 a.m., security footage from a Target in Bangor shows someone driving through the parking lot in a 2000 Daewoo station wagon. (Not something you see every day, police are quick to note.)
The person stole a battery out of a small, orange loader, only to then break into a larger loader and maneuver it into a connected Lowe’s parking lot. He or she didn’t do a very good job of it, though, taking out several light poles and some heavy-duty fencing along the way.
“Either they were having a fun time running into things, or they were just really bad at it,’’ Sergeant Timothy Cotton told Boston.com.
Cotton, who writes the department’s Facebook posts, wrote in this one that “any mammal with thumbs could have done a better job’’ of operating the loader — even a tiny Aye-Aye, “a small primate once thought to be a rodent.’’
Burn. After what Cotton described as “a couple hours of romping,’’ the person then returned the loader to Target and left at about 5:45 a.m.
Cotton said that the person operating the Daewoo went to another equipment store where they attempted to use another loader.
“They were on a loader mission. Maybe they were training for a job,’’ he suggested.
Luckily for police, the Daewoo’s registration fell out of the vehicle in the process. So, they know who owns the Daewoo and where it should be located; however, they have not been able to get in touch with the owners or find the vehicle.
According to the Facebook post, the white Daewoo wagon has a Maine registration: 2303 UK. Cotton said it’s possible that the wagon was stolen, and its owners don’t even know about its adventures, which is why they are not being identified.
The department has received some tips from people who say they’ve seen the wagon. Cotton is confident that police will locate the suspect, who he says will face multiple charges including criminal mischief, unauthorized use of property, and theft.
Of the antics, Cotton said, “I can’t say that I’m amused, but I’m intrigued,’’ adding that there are “all kinds of strange little nuances’’ to the case. He added that he can’t be sure of the person’s motivation, whether it was for fun or for a more practical reason.
Police don’t normally patrol the area, he said. And because the person was not hitting cars or making any exceptionally loud noises, the antics went undetected until Target employees noticed that the loaders had been moved and inspected their surveillance footage.
Regarding his entertaining Facebook posts, Cotton said he likes to “comedy it up’’ to get people to share them. Not only do people like to read these kinds of stories, but the public’s help — especially in locating missing Daewoo station wagons — can help solve crimes faster.
Anyone who sees the vehicle is asked to leave the department a Facebook message or call Officer Ryan Jones at 207-947-7384 and leave a voicemail. Those who wish to remain anonymous can call the tip line and dial extension 6.
Here’s the post in its full glory:
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