A contractor told police he was away from his pickup truck for only 15 minutes when he returned to discover that a backpack leaf blower was stolen from it.
The truck was parked at 590 Post Road on Wednesday morning, May 3, when the contractor left it at 8:45 a.m. and returned to find the leaf blower missing at 9 a.m. When the contractor arrived at the scene, all of his equipment was accounted for, according to the Darien police report.
Police were told that soon after the landscaper arrived at the scene, a white Ford van pulled into the same lot and backed in next to the victim’s pickup. The van had left the area by the time the contractor got back to the truck.
The driver of the van was described as a man with salt-and-pepper hair and similar facial hair, somewhere between 5 feet, nine inches and six feet in height and in his 30s or 40s. Police say they can’t be certain that the white van or its driver were connected to the theft.
The contractor valued the machine at $600. He described it to police as a red and black RedMax brand EX8500 backpack-style machine.
Police said the report came in at 10:17 a.m.