A local car dealership was broken into and robbed recently while the owner was visiting Colorado for his brother's memorial service.
"I closed on Wednesday, July 17 and placed a wreath on the bottom of my Texas Flag pole with my brother's name on it," said Tom Boyd, owner of Tom Boyd Motors on U.S. Highway 59 south.
Some time while Boyd was gone, someone knocked or kicked out a a 23-inch-by-37-inch piece of safety glass that was in a metal, dead bolt locked door that was keyed on both sides. He believes the suspect or suspects then climbed through the opening to get inside.
He finds the robbery especially despicable, considering he was out of town due to a death in the family.
"They saw the wreath and either thought someone who worked here had died or someone was out of town because someone had died. That is someone with no conscience or feeling. That is a cold-hearted person," Boyd said.
Boyd has been selling used cars since 1982 and has been robbed before, but never like this.
He estimates the person or persons who broke into his business stole about $5,000 worth of equipment.
He returned Monday night to Texarkana and stopped at the business to check the mail. It was dark and he didn't notice anything out of the ordinary at the car lot. He discovered he had been robbed on Tuesday morning.
He said the suspects ransacked the shop, emptying the contents of several drawers.
"They stepped over a $1,000 to steal $100. They don't know the difference," he said about some of the equipment they left behind.
However, it is still the worst he has been hit.
"It was good equipment that I've had for years. And some of it was brand new equipment," he said.
The suspects also took newer diagnostic equipment and battery chargers along with buffers for polishing cars and sockets. A packaged multimeter was left outside, soaking wet.
Boyd believes the robbery must have happened at night as he found a flashlight.
Years ago, it was car radios thieves targeted at his business.
Unless it was a faceless radio in the vehicle, he would usually have the radio removed and locked up in his shop.
The cost to repair the glass window was significantly more than the radio's value, he said.
The Bowie County Sheriff's Office is investigating the crime.
Boyd is offering a $500 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible.
Anyone with information can call the BCSO at 903-798-3149 or Boyd at 903-838-6911.