Porch Pirate Nearly Runs Over South LA Homeowner
SOUTH LA (CBSLA) — A homeowner tried to stop a package thief and nearly got run over.
It happened at his South LA home and it was all caught on his doorbell's security camera.
The homeowner caught the so-called porch pirate on his security cam stealing his packages.
It could've turned to a much more serious police investigation if the homeowner had been hurt.
It was last Wednesday evening when a barefoot Zachary Perkins ran out of his house after being alerted that a man had just swiped two packages off his front porch.
"To be honest the packages weren't even worth that much money. It was more like the audacity of someone coming up and stealing something from my house," said Perkins.
Perkins tried to stop the group of thieves in their getaway car.
In the video you can hear them revving the engine as Perkins climbed into the hood. Luckily he rolled off uninjured as the suspects sped away.
He was still able to get their license plate number, which he gave police.
"I would say within 45 minutes they had the car surrounded. They had four people in the car who were arrested," said Perkins.
He's not the first homeowner who's used video doorbells to catch the bad guys in the act or take matters into his own hands.
Back in December, a homeowner in Brea — a former NASA engineer — got so fed up with porch pirates stealing his stuff that he set booby traps inside fake packages. So when thieves opened them, a glitter bomb would go off or a foul smelling spray would go off.
Amazon has tried to help combat the problem by introducing an in-home delivery service.
Perkins says he wouldn't hesitate running after those thieves again.
"It's just rude. It's just rude coming and stealing someone's package," said Perkins. "Doesn't matter what is in them. Hopefully these people stop doing it."
Perkins is now building a fence around his house. He said he did get those packages back and police reportedly found other people's stolen packages inside of the suspect's vehicle.
