Stolen scooter recovered in pieces; victim thanks public for generosity in aftermath of theft; Sheriff's Office asks for tips to find at-large theft suspects
Posted: Oct. 24, 2009
Photos of Soto with her recovered, disassembled scooter: [ 1 ] [ 2 ] [ 3 ]
Sometime between 8:40 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 21, 2009 and 1 a.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 22, an unidentified person or persons stole a motorized scooter that was parked, unattended, next to the bike racks between the Barnes & Noble and J C Penney on the south side of Clackamas Town Center (12000 SE 82nd Ave., Happy Valley).Theresa I. Soto, age 37, reported to the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office that her motorized scooter had been stolen. She was devastated -- Ms. Soto has cerebral palsy, and is very dependent upon this motorized scooter for her mobility.
Since the theft, local citizens have stepped up to help the Ms. Soto. Several citizens have offered direct assistance -- and one citizen located the disassembled scooter along I-205. One citizen called the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office on Friday offering a motorized wheelchair that had belonged to his recently deceased mother. Additionally, Kelly of Shamrock Medical called the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office this morning to report that a customer had pledged to buy a brand-new scooter for Ms. Soto.
A motorist recovered Ms. Soto's motorized scooter during the afternoon on Oct. 24, the scooter was found disassembled along I-205. The scooter is not operable in its current condition.
At 5 p.m. on Oct. 24, Theresa Soto came to the Sheriff's Office North Station to identify and recover her stolen scooter. She was saddened when she saw her scooter in pieces -- but was also very impressed with the kindness of people in Portland.
In a conversation this morning (Oct. 24), Ms. Soto told the Sheriff's Office Public Information Officer: "I am overwhelmed with the outpouring of generosity. I got a call from a scooter store asking me to come in and get a new scooter. I have all of these offers. It is such a large purchase -- I want to take my time and make the right decision."
Ms. Soto is now the proud owner of a new scooter donated to her earlier in the day on Oct. 24. Ms. Soto told us that she plans on rehabbing her old scooter and potentially donating it to a person less fortunate than her.
The Sheriff's Office expresses its thanks to all the media outlets who broadcast this story about a desperate victim in need.
Linked above are images of Theresa Soto, reunited with the remains of her motorized scooter in front of the Sheriff's Office North Station.
Suspects still at large; tips sought
The Clackamas County Sheriff's Office is still looking for the suspects who stole and disassembled Ms. Soto's scooter. The Sheriff's Office urges anyone with information concerning this crime to contact the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office's confidential Tip Line -- by phone at 503-723-4949 or by using the online e-mail form.
The public can also submit crime-tip text messages to the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office from a cell phone. All users have to do is send a text message to CRIMES (274637 on your phone keypad) -- with the keyword CCSO as the first word in the message body. Important reminder: Please do not send emergency messages using the text-messaging system -- in case of an emergency, call 911.