(NEW YORK) — A shocking video from the front porch of a Virginia home shows how suddenly and easily porch pirate theft can occur in an age of increased home deliveries.
Jessica Saenz eagerly awaited the arrival of a new iPad last Thursday when the delivery went haywire.
Video captured on camera shows a thief carefully approaching the FedEx worker as she approaches the porch of the home. The thief quickly grabs the package out of the delivery worker’s hands and darts in the opposite direction.
“I couldn’t believe what I was seeing, like this guy right in front of my door, just grabbing the package, just running away,” said Saenz.
Saenz said she heard banging on her door coming from the mail carrier.
“She couldn’t even speak and she was just like shaking,” she said of the FedEx worker. “She was like, can you open the door, please? I’m like what’s going on. She’s like someone stole your package. I’m like, what?”
Saenz said she filed a police report immediately after the incident.
The Chesterfield County Police Department confirmed to ABC News’ Good Morning America that the video is a part of its investigation.
“The safe and secure delivery of our customers’ shipments is a top priority. We are working with local authorities as they investigate this incident,” FedEx said in a statement to GMA.
Ben Stickle, professor of criminal justice administration at Middle Tennessee State University, said efforts to combat a rise in porch piracy in recent years are not always successful.
“Many people have doorbell cameras, but that doesn’t seem to impact the rate of theft very much, and many states have added laws or strengthened punishments for laws on package theft,” he said.
Stickle added that the best way to combat these sort of porch thefts is to have packages delivered to a trusted neighbor or a parcel locker system, among other tactics.
“The only thing that comes between you and your packages, literally you and not anyone else,” he said.
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