A Kensington man is beefing up security at his home after a thief stole thousands of dollars worth of family heirlooms from his garage.
But the thief may have left behind some key evidence in Donald Bouchard’s garage.
Bouchard saw traces as soon as he entered his garage Wednesday.
“This garage is my paradise,” Bouchard said.
His corner level, a tool he hasn’t touched in years, was sitting on the floor
Bouchard said he never uses that tool.
He thinks a thief may have entered an unlocked side door, going straight for his tool chest. But it didn’t hold just any implements. It held Snap-On, some of the best money can buy, many passed down to Bouchard from his late father.
"If I were to try to buy them all back today they'd be like $3,000 dollars,” he said.
The thief filled a Home Depot bucket with the tools, tossed it in the bushes a couple blocks away, and left.
"And I found that bucket at the corner and that's my bucket,” Bouchard said.
The bucket didn't carry too much evidence, but Bouchard said police got a fingerprint off the corner level, since so few hands had touched it.
He said his next project is to install an automatic lock on his garage door so nobody else invades his paradise.
"It's quiet,” Bouchard said. “You have a nice view of Mission Valley and it's just really satisfying to be out here and be productive."
