Couple find their stolen truck in lot full of stolen vehicles, but police fail to act fast enough

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- A woman and her husband, who went to great lengths to track down their stolen truck, said they did not get the response they expected when they called law enforcement.

On Saturday, the couple tracked their stolen 2003 black Dodge Ram pickup truck to an overgrown lot off Fuqua near Scott.

It was stolen from their business last Wednesday, and a drone helped them spot it on the property.

It was nestled with other Dodge pickups in various stages of disassembly. After finding the truck, the couple thought the next step was to call law enforcement.

"And nothing was done. Unfortunately, nothing," the woman, who did not want to be identified, citing safety concerns, said. "They could have got somebody."

She and her husband reported the stolen truck to Houston police, but when they called 911, she was patched to the Harris County Precinct 7 Constable's Office. Precinct 7 confirmed to ABC13 that they responded and told the couple they needed a warrant to enter the property.

In the meantime, she and her husband watched as people came and went and even drove off with two Dodge pickups, she said.

"It's frustrating. We could have saved somebody's truck. There were two other trucks that were perfectly fine, but they drove off with them and those owners aren't going to know what happened to (them)," she said.

Precinct 7's Chief Deputy Marcus Grant told ABC13 his deputy waited over 12 hours for a search warrant, saying, "We can't go on someone's property and impede a person's privacy without one." He added that he understood the couple's frustration.

A video shared with ABC13 showed HPD was at the scene Monday morning with city tow trucks towing away what they found, including the couple's black Dodge pickup, or what was left of it.

"It was pulled apart," the woman said as she stood next to a shell of their truck. "A total loss."

The victim said she and her husband feel let down.

"We think we're safe out there. If we see something, we should say something, but at the end of the day, if we see something and the cops don't show up, it's nothing."

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