Eureka Police are trying to identify the person who rented a black 2023 Nissan Pathfinder from Hertz after a man claimed people inside the SUV stole his gold chain outside Walmart, 131 Eureka Towne Center Drive, Capt. Michael Werges said.
A 21-year-old Weslaco, Texas, man called police at about 5:25 p.m. May 12 to report the theft. He said the chain was valued at approximately $4,500, the report said.
The victim said he was leaving the store when the SUV pulled up near where he was parked. He said the man driving the Pathfinder asked him if he spoke Spanish, according to the report.
The victim said he talked with another man sitting in the passenger’s seat, who asked if he would show him his gold chain. The victim said he handed the chain to the man in the SUV, and that man handed the chain to a woman who was seating in the back passenger’s seat, the report said.
The woman then put the chain in a black sock and tied the sock. The man in the front passenger’s seat then handed the victim a black sock with a knot in it, insisting the victim take it per his religion, according to the report.
After the SUV left, the victim looked in the sock and found a watch, ring, $10 bill, $20 bill and a different chain. The encounter was recorded on surveillance video, and the victim was seen walking to the SUV at about 5:05 p.m. before it left at about 5:15 p.m., the report said.
Investigators identified the Pathfinder with Flock license-plate reading cameras, according to the report.
As of May 16, no one in the SUV have been identified, and the chain has not been recovered, Werges said. He asks anyone with information about the theft to call Eureka Police at 636-938-6600.