PARKLAND, FLA. (WSVN) – A family who just moved into a Parkland neighborhood has been left reeling after thieves stole a truck packed with nearly all their belongings from a moving company’s parking lot.
The Blanchettes spoke with 7News on Friday about the theft as they prepare to spend their first weekend at their new home.
“We’ve been working very hard, ever since we’ve been married, nearly nine years ago, to try to get the home of our dreams, and we’d finally accomplished that,” said Michael Blanchette.
But the sofa and the flatscreen that should be in the living room, as well as the beds that should be upstairs and all of 4-year-old Shelby’s toys, were all packed inside the moving truck that, the family said, was stolen Thursday night.
“[The moving company] called us this morning and told us that our stuff was stolen,” said Michael as he fought back tears.
The Blanchettes, who lived in Pompano Beach, closed on their new house on Thursday, but the closing was delayed a few hours.
They told the movers, Established Moving and Storage, to just go ahead and deliver their items Friday morning rather than Thursday night.
But sometime overnight, at the company’s Delray Beach facility, someone got inside the truck’s cab.
The subject is seen on surveillance video inside the cab. Moments later, a car pulled up, and both vehicles drove off the open parking lot.
“We have no clothes, no nothing, no furniture, nothing. All our toys were stolen,” said Michael. “I had a sports collection that I’d been saving since I was a little kid. I was going to give it to my daughter, and it’s gone.”
At the last minute, Rhonda Blanchette said, she decided to take the urn containing her mother’s ashes with her, instead of putting it on the truck. She passed away last month.
“She’d been putting little pictures and notes by it every day, saying prayers, and it’s all we have left, because all the memories of her are now gone,” said Michael.
Officials with the moving company said they’re working with the Delray Beach Police Department but did not provide further details.
As for the Blanchettes, they said they just want their belongings back, and for this day to be the celebration they had envisioned.
“After nine years, this was it, this was the big day. This was it,” said Michael.
If you have any information on this theft or the subjects’ whereabouts, call Broward County Crime Stoppers at 954-493-TIPS. Remember, you can always remain anonymous, and you may be eligible for a reward of up to $5,000.
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