Dan Pugmire said he went to the Veterans Garden in Caldwell Wednesday morning, only to be shocked to find his brand new truck stolen from the gated lot.
"I left it here for the night. Someone got in it, started it, drove it around, peeled out around the parking lot, came out the gate, spun around out front, almost hit the fence out front, and spun out and across the road," said Pugmire.
He purchased the Gray 2000 Chevy Silverado 1500 truck just three days before to help assist with work at the gardens.
He said the loss of the truck, doesn't just affect him.
"It's not about me. This is about what they are doing to a whole community. This is a community effort out here and it's violated us all and we don't deserve that," said Pugmire.
He said stealing the truck from the gardens is like stealing a piece of the honor and integrity from the sacred grounds.
"We have never even had a shovel of dirt stolen from here. I had it locked up. My truck was locked up and they had to break the fence to get in, break the truck to get in, and then steal it. We deserve better than that. Veterans deserve better than that," said Pugmire.
The worst part is he says, they never had to steal it in the first place.
"You know they could have borrowed it. They could have asked me to use it and I would have let them use it. That's the sad part about it. This is saving lives and this is affecting the cause and effect of our lives," explained Pugmire.
Pugmire is asking whoever took it to leave it at the garden, no questions asked.
If the truck isn't returned, he said he will lose part of the trust the gardens helped him gain back after his time overseas.
"We will move on and we'll move forward, but I still drag a little chain with me now and I'd like to have that chain removed," said Pugmire.
The 2000 Chevy Silverado has an Idaho license plate 2o 45837 and an Idaho Veterans Garden sticker in the back window. Anyone who happens to see the vehicle is asked to call non-emergency dispatch.
