SPRING, Texas – A tow truck driver is accused of adding insult to injury; investigators with the Harris County Precinct 4 Constable's office said Local 2 he stole from an accident victim.
Deputies said John Burch towed a car that had been involved in a wreck on the North Freeway on Dec. 21.
"The strange thing was the tow truck driver was like, 'No, we'll inventory everything. Don't worry about anything,'" said D'Andre Holmes.
Holmes was the one involved in the crash. He said it was late, he was disoriented and the only thing he was worried about was his car. He quickly grabbed his laptop bag out of the backseat and left the scene.
But a few days later, Holmes went to the tow yard to clean out the rest of his items from the car. That's when he made the disappointing discovery.
"The car had been ransacked," Holmes said.
Holmes had more than $600 worth of gift cards in an envelope in his backseat. As the manager of a Houston hotel, the cards were supposed to be Christmas gifts for his staff.
"Some of the envelopes were still there but of course the cards were gone. I was shocked," said Holmes.
Deputies began to investigate and said they caught Burch using the stolen gift cards at a Target store on the North Freeway. He was seen on surveillance video.
They recently arrested Burch and charged him with theft. He's due in court March 20.
"He wasted no time, no time at all," said Holmes.
Holmes said Burch was caught on camera using the stolen cards the same night as the accident and the Target he went to was only a few feet from where the crash happened.
The towing company Burch was working for told Local 2 they fired him as soon as they learned about the charges. It's unclear if he's still driving a truck for someone else. His operating license is still valid.