AKRON, Ohio — There's a porch pirate in the Akron area, but it's not the usual story of someone pilfering packages. This time it's potted plants.
On the last Saturday in June, the patience of Jeremy and Ashley Krul was tested when they noticed two pots of impatiens on the front porch of their home in Akron's Ellet neighborhood had been stolen.
"I got this weird sinking feeling in my chest. I'm like, did this really actually happen? Did somebody take my plant when I was sleeping?" Jeremy Krul said.
So he checked his cameras and couldn't believe what he saw.
A man had pulled up in an SUV around 4:30 a.m., got out of the vehicle, ran up to the porch and snatched the plants.
"It's creepy. It's very creepy. It is. It has nothing to do about actually stealing the item. It's just about being on our property in the middle of the night," Ashley Krul said.
On July 11, it appears the same guy struck again. This time, he stole a heavy pot of geraniums from the front porch of a Cuyahoga Falls home before disappearing into the night.
That incident at the home of 83-year-old Carol Ulrich was also caught on camera.
"I was shocked, mad, just sick," Ulrich said. "You buy a plant at the store. You put it in a pot. You water it. You fertilize it. You take care of it and then it's gone."
The victims are speaking out to warn other flower lovers and hope that someone out there can identify the thief.
"Like it's not your property. I don't know why you feel that you're entitled to other people's stuff. I work hard. We work hard for our stuff," Jeremy Krul said.
At this point, there is no police investigation. Jeremy and Ashley have not filed a police report at this time.
Ulrich did file a police report with Cuyahoga Falls, but officers considered the case closed because Ulrich said she didn't want to prosecute.
However, she told News 5 that she may reconsider.
"I told them, no, I was not going to press charges, but I think I would if we would catch this person," Ulrich said. "Don't go around stealing plants from people."
