Panther City BBQ tracked down a $30,000 pit trailer stolen from a restaurant to a cafe on the city's northwest side. The cafe's owner denies any involvement.
FORT WORTH, Texas — It's not the type of beef Panther City is known for.
A Fort Worth barbecue joint is accusing another restaurant of being involved in the theft of a $30,000 mobile barbecue pit trailer earlier this year, and the Daybreak Cafe owner suspects his property was used as a transit point for stolen goods. He claims that he seems to be aware of what is being done.
“It's disgusting to know that another nearby business is involved in stealing from us,” said Chris Magallanes, co-owner of Panther City. “I want to see people go to jail.”
DayBreak's owner denies the accusations and told WFAA on Tuesday that he does not know who brought the Panther City trailer into the vacant lot next to the cafe. A Fort Worth police spokesperson said the department's investigation is ongoing. No charges have been filed.
The battle began on New Year's Day, when Magallanes learned someone had stolen an 8,000-pound trailer he had discovered using a GPS tracking device in a vacant lot next to the cafe. Surveillance video showed a person in a white van pulling the trailer.
But Magallanes was not satisfied with recovering the stolen property.
“It's personal,” he explained. “Someone has to pay for this.”
He spent weeks surveilling the grounds next to Daybreak Cafe and tracking the white van, which kept coming back with other trailers, some of which included at least One vehicle was reported stolen. He heard reports that a food truck from another Arlington restaurant, Grease He Monkey Burgers, was stolen by a similar white van in December.
“We can't just sit back and watch it happen,” Magallanes said.
Magallanes set up a camera overlooking the vacant lot and said it appeared the owner of Daybreak Cafe knew the van driver.
Owner Mario Garcia said he speaks with all of his customers but does not know the man's name. He said he also has other business interests, such as buying discounted wood and paint cans to sell at flea markets. He claims he did not steal.
“If I wanted to steal, I wasn't going to work here from 4:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.,” he said.
Mr. Garcia said he has been in touch with his attorney and plans to file a lawsuit against Mr. Magallanes.
A Fort Worth Police Department spokesperson declined to say whether Garcia is the suspect, whether FWPD recovered any other stolen property from the scene, or whether FWPD has seen an increase in reports of trailer thefts. avoided. A spokeswoman said only that the investigation was ongoing.
“We're going to cook with this. We're not going to let them scare us into using this,” Magallanes said.
He plans to put the mobile barbecue pit back into rotation soon to keep the restaurant's heat up, which he considers a liability.
“They messed up the wrong barbecue place, and we're not going to sit idly by,” he said.
