In surveillance video from last Thursday obtained exclusively by necn, a man walks into the vestibule of a Boston apartment building, looking around before grabbing a package, cutting it open and stealing its contents.
The brazen thief even throws a second smaller package into his duffel bag before walking out the unlocked front door to a white car parked just outside in the city's Allston neighborhood.
"It's not even the money just the frustration behind it," said Allston resident Kyle Carpenter.
Carpenter says the man stole engraved groomsmen gifts that he had ordered for his friend's bachelor party next month, leaving him not only out the money, but scrambling to replace them.
"The fact that I can't even get something ordered to my own place of residence and that this person walked in where I live that's the part that's disturbing," he added.
Carpenter says a few months ago he had to have a package re-shipped after it went missing. Now he's wondering if that was stolen too. This time Carpenter had video proof, but when he contacted police he realized that may not be enough to catch the suspect.
"It's kind of unfortunately a common occurrence, so they seemed like they'd do their best but there's not much they can do," Carpenter said.
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We found it surprisingly easy to spot a package from the street through the glass vestibule doors, pull over and walk in without any obstacles.
Which may be why, even with surveillance video, this suspect and others like him could keep getting away with it.
"Unless he messes up again and/or someone else gets their package stolen," said Carpenter, "there won't be any justice."
The management company for Carpenter's apartment building has posted and given out fliers with tips on preventing package theft - like requiring signatures or getting them delivered to your office at work. It is also considering investing in lockboxes for its properties. Boston Police say if you recognize the suspect in this incident, give them a call.
