A thief broke into multiple vehicles at a Murfreesboro auto repair shop, damaging the owner's vintage truck that had recently been given to him by a friend who died from cancer.
Kee Tang, 51, vowed to fix anyone's car as a teenager.
He started Kee's Auto repair shop 23 years ago in Murfreesboro. On Wednesday at about 1 a.m., someone broke into three vehicles including a 1987 Red, Chevy Silverado.
"In this situation, it's just awful. I showed up. I saw the window was broken and I didn't know how bad the damage was until...I didn't want to go in it until the detectives showed up," he said.
According to the police report, the suspect broke the driver's side window and damaged the side mirror and ignition of the vintage truck.
"The guy had used a hacksaw, an electric hacksaw, to try and cut through my lock and I think the only good part was he couldn't get it out," Kee said.
Police were able to spot the suspect on surveillance video, but the footage hasn't helped to identify the man. Kee said he can only hope the person turns himself in.
Kee received the vintage car from a long-time friend, named Charley who died from cancer in 2016.
When Kee saw what happened to the classic truck, he said his heart dropped.
"I only wish I only knew who it was and let me explain to him what this truck means to me. I just want to let the guy know, it belonged to somebody that's important, that loved and cared about automobiles. I just want him to know that when you try to steal somebody's car or automobile, you need to think about it. It doesn't matter what it is anyway, it's wrong to steal but if he wanted to buy the truck and say 'hey, I really loved the truck' come talk to me about it," Kee said.
Kee shared conversations about how he and Charley would bound about the truck.
"I promised him before he passed, I'd take care of it and I got it for two months now and this is what happened. I'm basically going to try and reconstruct it and find as many parts as possible and put together and make it work,"he said.
Kee estimated the damages to the vehicle cost about $1,700.
He said he'll keep his promise to Charley and continue to take care of the vehicle.
