Lufkin Crime Stoppers Looking for Help in Nabbing Truck Thief [VIDEO]

Since the start of April, a rash of vehicle thefts and break-ins has police and residents along the Highway 94/W.Frank Avenue on high alert.  Three of those crimes have similarities which have led authorities to believe that there may be a connection, but that has not been nailed down as a fact.

Lufkin Crime Stoppers is seeking the public's help in trying to identify the person(s) responsible.  Here are some of the details from those crimes as issued by the Lufkin Police Department:

At approximately 1:15 PM on April 01, an unidentified black male stole a red, 2000 Chevrolet single-cab truck from the parking lot of a doctor's office located in the 1300 block of West Frank Avenue.

The victim told the investigating officer that he parked the vehicle outside the doctor's office, tossed his keys onto the driver's seat, and entered the building.  When he returned to the parking lot, approximately one hour later, the truck was gone.

A witness told the victim that he observed a black male take the truck.  The witness stated that the suspect walked into the parking lot from behind the building and then walked to the front door of the building.  The witness stated that the suspect stopped at the door, returned to the parking lot, entered the victim's vehicle, and drove away.  The witness stated that he had not seen the victim exit the vehicle and did not know the suspect was stealing it until an hour later when he was approached by the victim.

The suspect in this crime was described as a 20- to 30-year-old black male wearing dark pants and a dark blue t-shirt with white emblem on its front.  Video captured by a camera mounted outside the front door to the building briefly shows the suspect at the front of the building and a second camera shows the vehicle driving out of the parking lot and onto West Frank Avenue.

At this time, Lufkin PD Detectives have not definitively linked this crime to the April 02 theft of a 2010 Toyota Tundra from Kid Kountry Day Care, located at 2505 West Frank Avenue.  The driver of the Tundra left the vehicle's engine running and her six-year-old daughter in its backseat while she went inside the day care to retrieve her other daughter.  She stated that when she exited the building she saw the vehicle driving westbound on West Frank Avenue.

Lufkin PD Dispatchers notified all area law enforcement agencies of the incident and requested assistance locating the child and vehicle.  Moments later, the Dispatchers learned that the child was released, physically unharmed, in the parking lot of Bower Mobile Home Park in Hudson, which is located on West Frank Avenue (Highway 94) approximately one mile west of the day care.  The suspect in that crime was described as a 20- to 25-year-old black male with short, possibly curly hair, wearing a black t-shirt, black shorts, and white and black shoes.

The red, single-cab Chevrolet truck has not yet been recovered but, at approximately 6:00 PM on April 02, Angelina County Sheriff's Office Deputies and Hudson PD Officers located the Toyota Tundra in the parking lot of Hudson Green Apartments, located at 840 Mount Carmel Road.

Lufkin PD Detectives are investigating a third vehicle theft.  This crime occurred between 4:30 PM on April 02 and 3:00 AM on April 03 in the employee parking lot at Pilgrim's Pride, located in the 1700 block of West Frank Avenue.  The victim in this crime reported that her gold-colored 1995 Toyota Avalon was taken from the parking lot; this victim reported that she was in possession of the vehicle's key.  The suspect's description is currently unknown for this case.

The suspects, or possibly suspect, in these crimes have not been identified.  Anyone who can identify the suspect(s) or provide information concerning any of these crimes should call Crime Stoppers of Lufkin at (936) 639-TIPS or submit an anonymous tip at www.LufkinCrimeStoppers.com.  All calls and tips are anonymous, so tipsters never have to give their name, and Crime Stoppers may pay a cash reward for information that leads to an arrest related to these crimes or the recovery of the stolen vehicles.