MATAGORDA, Texas – A mother is pleading for help after someone took items belonging to her late son, who died while serving in the military.
Patti Ward said she stored her son's belongings in a shed in her backyard. She thinks someone she thought she could trust stole them.
It has been six years since Ward lost her son, Sgt. Joshua Allen Ward, who was killed by a suicide bomber in Iraq during his third tour with the Army.
"Every day is like yesterday to me," Ward said. "I know every second from the minute I found out. He was just the best. I couldn't ask for any better kids."
Ward said the only mementos of Joshua she had were recently stolen.
"It was two big Army issued duffel bags that were sent to me from Iraq," Ward said. "All of his belongings were sent home to me. His clothes carry his scent, so those little things matter."
Ward said she hired a man two weeks ago to build a fence. That worker stored some of his materials in Ward's backyard shed where she kept her son's duffel bags.
But Ward said the man never finished the job on the fence.
"The guy disappeared and we couldn't get a hold of him."
That's when Ward said she checked the shed and realized her son's personal belongings were gone.
"Those things don't mean anything to anybody else, but they mean everything to me to get through my life without him," Ward said. "I'm devastated. I'm mad. I'm angry."
Ward said she thinks the worker also stole $1,800 worth in tires, wheels and other equipment from the shed. She has filed a police report but just wants the duffel bags back.