ST. LOUIS – Stray Rescue of St. Louis is asking for the public’s help after their new facility was broken into while under construction, costing them roughly $100,000 in material and repairs.
Stray Rescue said the crime hurts not only the organization but also the strays, who are in desperate need of help.
In the last 72 hours, Stray Rescue of St. Louis has taken in and treated four dogs with gunshot wounds.
“The uptick in abuse is horrendous, and that just underlines the reason why we want to move and provide more services,” said Aimee Dearsley, Stray Rescue of St. Louis Chief Development Officer.
In March, Stay Rescue of St. Louis broke ground on a brand-new building. In a few years, they intend to convert the old train warehouse into a three-story multi-use facility.
On Wednesday morning, employees discovered their dream had been tarnished.
“We’re sad because they’re stealing from the dogs,” Dearsley said.
Around 10 p.m. Tuesday, police said surveillance video showed a black sedan drive up to the construction site on Bingham Drive in South St. Louis.
Slowly, two thieves got out, then proceeded to cut the front gate padlock and walk up the driveway to the entrance of the building. With flashlights in hand, suspects used a crowbar to break in.
Once inside, the thieves stole three massive pallets of copper wires sitting in the area. Then they moved to the back wall, where they cut off an entire electrical unit. Police said the suspects used a U-Haul to move the stolen material.
The theft will set the organization back roughly $100,000, and now they’ll have to start from scratch.
“The community always rallies around us, and we’re always so thankful for that,” Dearsley said. “So, we are asking them to please step up again and donate and help us raise the funds to get us back on track and move forward.”
The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department is investigating.
Both suspects are on the loose.
“Just like the animals that we rescue, we are resilient, we have to be resilient for them,” Dearsley said. “It’s not going to keep us down, we’re going to keep going for sure, and we’ll rise above like we always do.”