Caught on Camera: Porch pirate poses as DoorDash driver
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ST. LOUIS (KMOV) — After years of porch pirate incidents in the St. Louis area, one family believes there’s a new twist to the crime many have fallen victim to.
David Hayes lives in an unincorporated part of St. Louis County, near Creve Coeur, and had an Amazon package delivered on Tuesday. Hayes arrived home from work Tuesday afternoon to find his package nowhere in sight. Instead, he said there was an order from St. Louis Bread Company sitting on the front porch.
“Something is not right. I didn’t quite know what happened until I reviewed the footage on my camera,” Hayes said.
Surveillance footage shows a man with a DoorDash bag leaving a to-go order from St. Louis Bread Company on the porch and simultaneously stealing his Amazon package. Watching the video about 40 minutes after the incident, Hayes said he felt angry and violated.
“It seemed pretty deceitful and well-thought-out, so I would think they’d done this before,” Hayes said.
Hayes said he cross referenced the order number on the St. Louis Bread Company delivery and said that employees at a nearby location told him an order went missing that day.
“It made sense that somebody came, took that order and then used it as a decoy to deliver it to a house that never ordered such an item, then stole my item,” Hayes said.
News 4 reached out to St. Louis Bread Company, but officials could only confirm that they are investigating the incident and coordinating with the St. Louis County Police Department. The order was also never placed on the DoorDash app. The company says they are still investigating if the driver even works for them.
Investigators with St. Louis County Police Department said they haven’t received reports of similar incidents in the area and that porch thefts mainly occur around the holidays.
Hayes said the Amazon package was a shirt for his daughter and not an item of great value. However, he said it’s the brazen thief walking onto his property and taking something that didn’t belong to him that upsets him. From now on, he’ll be heightening security even further around his home.
“I have some secrets I won’t let you know but possibly adjust some cameras and raise the awareness,” Hayes said.
St. Louis County’s police, DoorDash and St. Louis Bread Company are all continuing to investigate the incident. DoorDash said employees aren’t required to wear a certain uniform. Those who are questioning whether a driver is legitimate can track the driver on the app or call or text them to verify.
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