SACRAMENTO COUNTY, Calif. — Tyrin Foster had stepped away from his work site March 20 just before 6:00 p.m. when he says a thief swooped in and stole his trailer filled with landscaping tools.
“Originally, I was pretty like, just caught off guard. You know, I’ve never really been the victim of any kind of crime...” Foster said. “I was just surprised and then after that just kind of angry - realizing the consequences behind something like this happening.”
Foster is the co-owner of American Landscape Maintenance, based out of North Highlands. He said he’s suspicious of whoever took his trailer filled with equipment.
“I think he staked us out because he was pretty quick, efficient. He knew where our lock was on the trailer. So he cut that, took off with it, so I imagine he knew what he was doing,” Foster said.
The house on the 3800 block of Winona Way in North Highlands had surveillance cameras. The footage is not great, but it does show someone in a dark hoodie appear and leave with the trailer.
Since then, Foster has been forced to use the second-tier equipment he kept around just in case the good equipment needed repair. Foster said two industrial-grade Toros, hedgers, a weed eater, backpack blowers, rakes, fertilizer and more were all taken.
He said the theft makes sense for the North Highland’s area.
“The community where we’re from, there’s a lot of landscapers in that area. So yeah, it would be pretty useful to take something like that,” Foster said.
He said the loss is especially hard because his company, American Landscape Maintenance, does work on about 60 properties a week, and they were just getting on their feet.
“It was a setback considering we’re a start-up company. We’ve only been going for about a year, so when you take a hit like that, that’s your livelihood. That’s everything you’re using to get by,” Foster said.
He’s also disheartened about what it also means for the larger community.
“It’s definitely sad for the community because it’s hard to trust. You know, I’ve definitely got my head on a swivel, and I’m more observant now,” Foster said.
Anyone with information on the theft is asked to call the California Highway Patrol. American Landscape Maintenance has set up a GoFundMe, which is available HERE.
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