AKRON, Ohio (WOIO) – Thieves hit an Akron plumbing business twice this weekend, stealing two trailers full of equipment from J&J Plumbing.
Surveillance video shows a truck pulling into the business, hitching up one of the trailers and driving off. But the suspects had no idea what was actually inside.
“They didn’t know it, but that trailer was full of equipment for the nonprofit that we support,” said Ben Beaver with J&J Plumbing.
“I would have loved to be there in that moment, when they looked in and realized, ‘Wait, this isn’t plumbing stuff.’”
Instead of plumbing equipment and water heaters, the stolen trailer was filled with soccer equipment for a local youth league the company supports.
Once the suspects realized what they had taken, they returned to J&J for a second attempt, hoping to steal something more valuable.
“They realized this best we can tell and they came back and jumped the other fence, to break into one of our HVAC install vehicles,” Beaver said.
The trailer filled with soccer equipment was recovered with nothing missing. But the HVAC equipment from the second theft is gone.
“More than anything, they got equipment from us, and it just feels violating,” Beaver said. “I don’t want that for anyone else in our community.”
Beaver said the equipment can be replaced, but the impact on the community soccer league would have been significant.
“That heart and value of our community is who we are,” Beaver said.
While grateful that Saturday soccer can continue, Beaver hopes those responsible are held accountable.
“We own our decisions and hopefully these people own their decisions too,” Beaver said.
Anyone with information or who recognizes anything from the surveillance video is encouraged to contact the Akron Police Department.
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