EDWARDSVILLE, LUZERNE COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — Police in Luzerne County are keeping a close eye on a rash of car and van break-ins the last few weeks, the thieves taking valuable equipment from inside.
The man who lives in a home on Meyers Street was robbed of more than 50 tools.
He lost thousands of dollars in equipment out of his work van that was parked right here the night it happened. He says it's a big loss while working on a big project.
"This is like a screwdriver kit with different heads for it," said victim Bryan Denny.
Denny's tools look new because they are. He's a carpenter who is in the process of building a restaurant on South Main Street in Edwardsville.
"I had to go spend $3500 on that right now for new tools that I'm halfway there probably," Denny explained.
Halfway to making up for what was stolen.
On Monday, March 3, Denny says his work van, which is now in the shop, was burglarized around 4:00 a.m.
"I guess I left the door open. I guess I did I must of, had to," Denny continued.
Denny says he drove the van to Home Depot in Dickson City a few hours later that morning around 7:00 a.m.
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When he came back outside, he opened the back door and noticed everything was gone.
"I was shocked I wanted to cry actually," Denny said.
He says he came home right away to see if a camera might have caught the robbers in action.
Denny says his camera isn't working at the moment and his neighbors didn't capture anything either, but the camera from the business next door did.
It recorded what Denny described as a silver car resembling a Pontiac or Chevy that drove up to his van that morning.
Denny says his neighbor's van is just like his, except there are windows. In the back, there were seven boxes of tools worth nearly $7,000.
"Drills, screw guns. saws, circular saws all kinds of stuff," Denny explained.
The more than 50 tools range in price anywhere from $40 to $500.
In addition to the new restaurant, he rehabs houses and says it's taken him 20 years to collect all those tools.
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"That's my life. That's how I make my money, you know what I mean?" Denny continued.
Denny says he's been robbed of little things in the past, but this wrench in the toolbox is just too costly.
"I can't afford to lose seven thousand dollars. It's making me feel different about people and the area is getting bad around here too I don't know what it is," Denny added.
Edwardsville Police tell 28/22 News there have been a handful of other van break-ins and tools robbed that have occurred over the last several weeks.
They are now investigating and looking into that video camera footage.
Denny tells 28/22 News the next set of tools he buys he's investing in airtags to keep track of them.
He says he's also going to put extra locks on his van.
