By LYNETTE HAALAND, Four Points News
Over $10,000 worth of guns and gear were stolen last week in San Antonio from a Steiner Ranch man and his buddy who were taking their annual hunting trip to South Texas.
The two friends who grew up together were on their way to hunt dove and hogs in Cotulla, a small town a couple of hours south of San Antonio. Dove season recently opened and they were meeting a third friend for their annual hunt on his land.
The Steiner resident met up with his friend from Wimberley in Spring Branch where they loaded gear into the double cab, Chevy pickup and continued south.
On their way to South Texas for dove and hog hunting, this local hunter and his buddy had all of their gear stolen including seven guns and ammunition while they stopped for dinner in San Antonio. This photo shows an earlier hunt.
They got to San Antonio around 7:30 p.m. on Thursday night and decided to eat dinner at the California Pizza Kitchen in the upscale mall Alamo Quarry Market located between I-35 and Hwy 281.
It was still light outside and the large parking lot had a lot of people in it when they stopped.
They came out of the restaurant 40 minutes later and discovered their seven guns, ammunition, gear, clothes, laptop and even their cooler full of food was gone.
“We were shocked and stared at each other for a while,” said the truck owner from Wimberley. The two did not use their names for security reasons.
“At first I thought I hadn’t locked my vehicle… but somebody peeled the panel by door handle. They were in and out in 10 minutes. They went through everything,” he said. His shotgun, pistol and two rifles were taken and his Yeti cooler filled with groceries.
The Steiner man’s two shotguns and a rifle were stolen, but his Igloo cooler was left behind and so were his golf clubs in the bed of the pickup.
Before they could even call 911, a security guard was on the scene.
“Two seconds after we discover it, the guard showed up and neither asked surprised nor like it was a big deal. He had a, ‘too bad for you’ attitude,” said the Wimberley hunter. Both hunters were suspicious of the guard’s timing.
It took another few minutes for an officer with the San Antonio Police Department to arrive and file a report. He had come from across the street where there was a similar burglary.
Both men have heard about hunters being targeted while on trips to South Texas along the I-35 corridor through Dallas, Austin and San Antonio as well as Houston.
“I didn’t believe it. Now I believe it. These thieves know we have expensive gear and they have a clean runway down I-35,” said the local hunter.
The two friends hope San Antonio will crack down on these crimes and wants to warn other hunters of this potential trend.
Not to let it ruin their entire weekend, the two friends went to Academy and bought more gear and then went back to Wimberley to pack more supplies before heading south again.
The three friends after a hunt.