Trouble, Right Here in River City!

The Car in my Garage

You think you've seen everything, and then something happens that totally throws you for a loop!

I came home last Wednesday, after a long day at work, and turned down my alley to my garage as usual.  I immediately noticed that the garage door was down, which was odd, because I'd left it up. (There's nothing in there to steal!)

Imagine my surprise when I opened the door to find a white Honda Civic staring back at me.

This was not my car.

And I was pretty sure this car did not belong to any of the other people who live in apartment complex, or my neighborhood!

The officer checking out the car

I immediately called my apartment manager, Rod, who lives a few houses down from me.  "I'll be right there," he said.  He's an ex-Marine and always great to have around in a crisis.  I was pretty freaked out.

Bless his heart, he stuck right by my side for an hour and a half as the policeman did his work and the problem was taken care of!

Checking for fingerprints

"Do you think it's a stolen car?" was one of the first things I asked Rod when he showed up.  He quickly agreed with me.  So, while Rod kept an eye on things, I went upstairs to my apartment to call the police.

There was an officer on the scene within a few minutes.

The officer was efficient and pleasant to us.

The officer immediately ran the plates on the car, as well as the VIN number.  Interestingly enough, though both had been reported stolen, they didn't match.

The Stolen Plates

The great thing was, in the matter of a few minutes after that, the car's owner showed up.  She was a nice lady who lives a few blocks to the north of me.  The police had contacted her and some neighbors had given her a ride down to my alley to pick up her car.

The police truck in my alleyway

She was ecstatic to get her car back.  She had just come home from the hospital the previous Thursday, she said, when the car had been stolen from her carport.

Rod and the car owner commiserating.

I thought, how awful for her!  How terrible that the thieves had no concern for her situation.  Well, of course they don't. They're criminals.  They are cruel and selfish and don't care what they do.

One of my Whittier friends had his car stolen, too, fairly recently.  It was returned two days after this incident in my garage.

All I can think of, is WHAT IS THIS WORLD COMING TO?.  My neighborhood used to be a nice, quiet one.  Now, it seems, we are always dealing with things like this.

On the bright side, neither car was stripped, and both were still driveable.

The crime victim, checking out her car

The officer in charge went through the car meticulously, and the owner was able to verify that most of her personal things, i.e. a flashlight and some gardening equipment, were still there.

I'm so glad that this nice lady got her car back.  I have to admit I just don't get why someone would do something like that.  I am doubly puzzled over why they would stash the car in my garage!

Kinda creepy!  You know what I mean?