CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) — Porch pirates have struck again, this time in a North Chesterfield neighborhood, and the victim is warning others to protect their purchases.
8News spoke with James Chenault who said he wanted to get ahead of his holiday shopping and ordered a gift online. Not long after Chenault’s delivery made it to the front steps of his home, it was swiped away by a pair of porch pirates.
“I was shocked, I tell you. We’ve been here for 28 years and I always see on TV other areas where packages are being stolen, but I never thought they would happen in this neighborhood. But lo and behold, here it comes,” he said.
The Chesterfield County Police Department confirmed the incident happened at 3 p.m. Monday, Nov. 13. Chenault’s Ring doorbell camera captured the entire incident. In the video, a person wearing a blue long-sleeve shirt is seen walking up to Chenault’s porch, grabbing a box and running away.
Moments later, the same person can be seen with another person wearing a short-sleeve, gray shirt. Both people were seen carrying boxes in their hands.
Chenault was appalled by the audacity of the thieves.
“They were just nonchalant about it,” Chenault said, “They just walked up the street without packages [and] a few minutes later, came back down the street, and each one of them had a package in their hand.”
8News reached out to local law enforcement agencies for tips on how those at home can prevent packages from being stolen, and officials from the Richmond Police Department responded with these tips:
- Have packages delivered to your workplace
- Have a family member or a trusted neighbor receive your packages
- Have packages delivered to UPS distribution centers
- Use Amazon lockers or FedEx lockers at Walgreens
- Have packages held for pick up in your local post office
- Look after your neighbors and report suspicious activity
- Use doorbell cameras and share video with detectives, and
- If you see suspicious activity call 911
The investigation is ongoing. Anyone who recognizes the suspects is asked to call Chesterfield Police at 804-748-1251.
