Unlocked City Of Jenks Vehicles Taken By Burglars

People in Jenks said the city made it easy for three men to steal expensive city equipment. They got away with trucks, lawn mowers and construction equipment.

The burglars cut a hole in the security gate, but surveillance cameras captured the whole break-in.

Video shows three suspects go door to door, determining what equipment to take from the City of Jenks maintenance facility.

It must have been a great surprise to them, realizing all of the vehicles were unlocked and that some had keys in them.

The burglars got away with two trucks, two lawn mowers and a Bobcat.

A Jenks police officer went by the lot after and wrote in a report that "five of the vehicles had the keys either in the cab or in the ignition."

An Oklahoma Highway Patrol trooper got some of the equipment back around 2:00 Wednesday morning on the Turnpike.

The trooper thought it was weird to see James Cox driving a City of Jenks truck, with city lawn mowers, so early in the morning. The trooper pulled Cox over and arrested him.

6/10/2015 Related Story: Eufaula Man Arrested For Theft Of City Of Jenks Equipment

People in Jenks, like Rita Lapan and Amber Reed, think it's weird the city doesn't secure expensive equipment better.

"It would just be an invitation for someone, with a key in the ignition, to say, 'Here's my car if you need it,'" Lapan said.

Reed said, “You're just open for someone coming by and looking around and then they might think, 'Oh, well, I can just hop right in here.'"

A maintenance facility worker said employees do make the mistake of leaving vehicles unlocked, sometimes with keys inside.

There is a security gate and police said the burglars got inside by cutting a hole in the fence.

"We all pay taxes and that's part of our community so they need to be more avid about taking care of it, watching over it," Reed said.

The Jenks city attorney didn't have much to say, other than the burglary is under investigation.

Police are still looking for one of the stolen pickups, as well as the Bobcat.

The stolen pickup that's still missing is a white one-ton Dodge truck.

If you have any information, you're asked to call Jenks police at 918-299-6311.