This browser does not support the Video element.
Thieves steal over $20,000 in football equipment from Baytown youth football team
FOX 26 Reporter Gabby Hart explains what happened and what the team is saying to the thieves who targeted them.
BAYTOWN, Texas - A youth football team in Baytown is out of thousands of dollars worth of equipment after a thief cut through the gates at their practice field and took off with their trailer.
More than $20,000 worth of equipment is now gone including that trailer, the trailer also housed equipment for the cheerleading and drill team.
RELATED: 5,000 gallons of diesel stolen by suspects, HPD investigating
Courtney Correa, president of the Baytown Broncos Youth Sports Association says the theft happened on Saturday morning. The thieves cut the gate locks to their practice field on North Main Street in Baytown and took off with their trailer, leaving behind only the block that was meant to keep it in place
"Tackle dummies, extra helmets, mouthpieces, chin straps, sound system equipment, tables, tents, concession stand items, coolers, pompoms for the girls, our blow-up tunnel was in there," Correa explained.
LATEST CRIME AND PUBLIC SAFETY STORIES
The Baytown Broncos are one of the only leagues in town that offer free equipment for kids in their program ages 5 to 14 years old, and now they're worried it could take them years to replace everything that was stolen.
"There's a shortage on those things right now, helmets are hard to come by, youth size shoulder pads are hard to come by," Correa said.
She says she hopes the crooks responsible for ripping off these young athletes will find it somewhere in their hearts to at least return the items that they'll likely have no use for.
"Bring our stuff back, you know it's for kids. I don't know what you would have a use for chin straps, mouthpieces, and tackle dummies for. Even if you just come and toss it over the fence, or if someone sends us a location to go and pick our stuff up, we would be grateful for that," she said.
The team has started a fundraiser to help raise money to replace those items, you can find more information here.