140 frozen turkeys stolen from Illinois market
WATERLOO, Ill. - Police in southern Illinois are investigating the theft of 140 frozen turkeys from a locked refrigerated trailer outside a meat market.
The pre-Thanksgiving thefts happened sometime between Monday evening and when Schneider's Quality Meats and Catering in Waterloo opened Tuesday morning, the Belleville News-Democrat reported (http://bit.ly/1HurDXy).
Store owner Mark Lengacher said surveillance video from a neighboring business shows a van filled with 35 cases of turkeys. Waterloo Police Chief Jim Trantham said he is hopeful that video will give officers more information.
"I guess even thieves have Thanksgiving," Lengacher said. He said the thefts won't ruin the holiday for his business because he has plenty of other turkeys to go around.
"No one is going to miss out on their turkey," he said.
The Jennie-O brand turkeys weights about 12 pounds each. Police in the town about 25 miles south of St. Louis valued the haul at more than $2,000.
Lengacher said he was angry at first, but after two days, he has cooled down.
"There are much worse problems in the world than some stolen turkeys," he said.
Trantham said, "I guess if we find a large group of thieves together eating ... turkeys, we will have our people."
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Information from: Belleville News-Democrat, http://www.bnd.com