HOUSTON – MacGregor Park in Southeast Houston is being targeted by thieves. They are stealing the metal stakes that hold the trees down.
Barry Ward is the executive director of Trees for Houston. He says this has been going on for awhile.
"The trees are larger. They have three or four stakes and there are hundreds of them. So they can come in here and they can steal enough to make a good cash haul in one swoop," said Ward.
"Often times people come to us trying to sell us stakes that are probably ours or was most certainly stolen from some other job," Ward said.
The metal stakes cost $5 each. They are being sold for as much as $2.
Ward thinks the thieves who are stealing the stakes are in the landscaping business, because it would take someone with knowledge to know how to remove them.
Trees for Houston is a non-profit organization that depends on donations. If the thefts continue, fewer trees will be planted.
The City of Houston Parks and Recreation Department has been monitoring the situation. A police report has also been filed.
Organization leaders are hoping someone will catch these metal stake thieves in the act.
Anyone with information on the thefts is asked to call the City of Houston Parks and Recreation Department. The phone number is 832-395-7000.