Several Propane Tanks Stolen From Store

[genieroze]

Several Propane Tanks Stolen From Store
Source: 10TV | 2:14:32 PM

Propane tanks were stolen from a Sears hardware store on the northwest side of Columbus, and now police are wondering if the 30 tanks are in the hands of terrorists.

Police say it was at 10 p.m. Monday night, after the store had closed, when an employee was walking out to his car and saw two people with a white Ryder truck near where the propane tank cages are located.

Officials say the locks were cut with bolt cutters the suspects loaded up all of the full 17-pound propane tanks and left behind the empty tanks.

The employee was not able get back inside the store so he went home, which is a four-minute ride away, and called an assistant manager who was still in the store. The manager then called the police.

Officers were on the scene within five minutes, but the Ryder truck and the tanks were gone. Now, police want those tanks back.



http://www.trackingterrorism.com/Default.asp?dismode=article&artid=1056

I tried to get the original link on 10TV in Ohio but it was gone

[hatrack]

1. How about this possibility:

The missing tanks are in the hands of people who can't pay their utility bills this winter and want to stay warm. Could that maybe, just maybe, be a possibility?

[TheDebbieDee]

4. But if they were that poor, how could they afford to rent a truck?

Ryder didn't report any stolen or missing trucks, did they?

[intheflow]

45. Big difference between $20 truck rental and

$200 utility bills.

[NVMojo]

9. I know 10,000 people living 20 miles from me who heat their homes

with propane.

[wicket]

38. I know plenty of people who do that too

That would make the most sense to me, but instead they have to use it to whip up fear of terrorism. How about fear about our fellow American's FREEZING this winter?? :( Bleh, this is so sad.

[TX-RAT]

43. To small for home heating. You'd be changing bottles twice a day.

We run on Propane here, comes out once a month. Most people here have at least a 250 gal tank.

[intheflow]

46. It could run a cook stove or a light.

Every little bit helps if you're really poor in America.

[Liberaltarian]

49. or a space heater...

or a refrigerator.

like you said- every little bit helps.

[durablend]

53. Amazing how they can't get that piece of the puzzle

"Police say there's no market for stolen propane, and that is why there's so much concern that it could be used to blow something up."

Uhhhhh...(like everyone else posted) they can use those for heat you know.

[The Stranger]

60. If it's too small for home heating, how could it possibly be terrorism?

[TX-RAT]

65. Didn't say it was.

[XanaDUer]

10. That's the first thing I thought of

...

[matt819]

19. Or maybe -- and I know this is radical --

but they could be in the hands of -- ready for this? -- thieves.

Really now, folks, don't you think even your run of the mill terrorist would manage to obtain what he needs to obtain without resorting to theft and thus adding to the risk.

[sendero]

35. Exactly..

.... a real terrorist can't come up with a few hundred dollars to buy this stuff? He'd rather blow his cover early by stealing it?

Color me laughing out loud, Americans are getting stupider by the day now.

[merh]

51. What about in the hands of folks who make meth!

It has to be cooked and maybe the tanks are being used to provide the source to cook the stuff. :shrug:

[Just Me]

57. They were 17 pound tanks for crying out loud. It's hunting season.

Of course it was way, way more likely than not just plain thievery.

Is this just more BS propaganda ramping up for the war against Iran or what?

Geez.

[Viva_La_Revolution]

33. That was my first thought.....

as I sit here warming my hands over a space heater. And this; Is a propane tank really a good bomb? Wouldn't they make a smaller, lighter, more effective one instead? Something easily hidden and stronger? A tank like that will blow up, but you can't direct it. Just doesn't make sense. :shrug:

[TheWraith]

37. Nope.

"Is a propane tank really a good bomb?"

No, not in the least. You can make one blow up, sure, but it's hardly an effective weapon. For one thing, you would need to attach a real bomb to the outside to puncture the canister and detonate the gas. For another, while gas explosions are dangerous to people in enclosed spaces, they aren't that powerful, and don't cause a lot of infrastructure damage. If somebody wanted to make a bomb, they could build one out of car equipment bought at a convenience store that would be a lot more damaging, easier to come by, and easier to use.

[durablend]

41. Nah, couldn't be...

Everyone's got money buried in the back yard to pay for heat...either that or they can go and get 3 or 4 more jobs to pay for it.

$257.78 for 100 gallons last week :mad:

Yeah, it's gonna be a FUN winter :eyes:

[rinsd]

54. Too small....

At best they could be used with one of those big outdoor heaters but they run about $300. Or a construction type heater usually used for keeping freshly painted rooms at a decent temperature.

They could be used for a gas grill though.

[durablend]

58. How you do know they didn't steal a few of those?

A bunch of missing propane tanks lends itself better to "terra terra terra scare" than a bunch of missing heaters.

[rinsd]

64. I don't know....

I didn't say this was terror-related. Just that these 5 gallon propane are likely too small for home heating. As fars as outdoor or construction type heaters, this is what Sears carries

http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/search.do?BV_UseBVCookie=Yes&verticalFullName=&keyword=outdoor+heater&displayTarget=searchresults

There are heaters cheaper than I thought available.

But since this was a break-in at the propane "shack" outside the store, I would seriously doubt that those items were in the same area.

[hatrack]

2. Self-delete nt

.

[Turbineguy]

3. Terrorists?

Would that be some unemployed beneficiary of the Bush Economic Miracle who wants to keep his family warm?

[necso]

12. The definition of "terrorist" is,

I think, ah, somewhat flexible... at least in the hands of the neocons.

But we shall see. And it would not surprise me if we had further "incidents" of "terrorism" on the domestic front -- or at least a great deal of hype.

Did these guys "look Iranian"? -- Or (North) Korean perhaps?

Still, common theft would seem the most likely, perhaps the perpetrators were moving -- this is a good time for "pulling off stuff".

[genieroze]

16. Update

Police Find Truck Possibly Linked To Propane Theft
Tanks Were Taken From Hardware Store

POSTED: 2:48 pm EST December 1, 2004
UPDATED: 3:11 pm EST December 1, 2004
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Columbus police may have found the Ryder truck used to steal 30 propane tanks from a local hardware store, NBC 4 reported.

The propane tanks were stolen Monday night from outside of a Sears Hardware store at Henderson and Reed roads.

SLIDESHOW: Propane Tanks Stolen

The empty truck was found Tuesday night near 18th Avenue and North Fourth Street.

Bolt cutters were found inside the truck. There were no propane tanks found in the truck.

A witness said a white Ryder truck was seen outside the store at the time of the theft.

Stay with NBC 4 and nbc4i.com for more information.


http://www.nbc4i.com/news/3962650/detail.html

[Turbineguy]

50. Mind you, I do not condone

the theft, I merely wonder if it is a terrorist act.

[eternalburn]

5. links here....

http://www.10tv.com/Global/story.asp?S=2630380

http://www.nbc4i.com/news/3962650/detail.html

http://www.nbc4i.com/news/3958194/detail.html

[genieroze]

18. There is the link I was looking for

http://www.10tv.com/Global/story.asp?S=2630380

[MrSlayer]

6. Isn't there a rally in Columbus this Saturday?

Anti-War or some such? Might be a plant story to scare some people off. Might actually be a plot to blow some protestors up. Might be a bar-ba-que maniac. You never know.

[rockedthevoteinMA]

11. It's a rally for the vote fraud/disenfranchisement (sp?)

Tons of people are going to be there...

[WMliberal]

7. bobbly flay did it

he can't admit that grilling season is officially over

[Robb]

67. Nooooo! NEVER!!!

Grilling season is NEVER over! :D

I'm doing elk tonight, I expect -15 to -20 degrees. Mind you, I won't be lingering outside particularly long, but I grill in all weather.

And I echo the earlier sentiment about how much it cost for 100 gallons only last week. Cheaper to break down the furniture for a bonfire. :eyes:

[Komrade _azul]

8. Time for that deep fried turkey dinner...

Is every freakin' theft of propane going to become a national security issue?

[Stinky The Clown]

13. Only if they also report the ongoing theft of matches from 7-11 stores

[masjenkins]

15. this caught my eye..

Considering that I live in NYC, things like this always catch my eye... I seem to remember a similar story some months ago in Colorado.I googled "propane tank theft" and it seems there have been a rash of propane thefts since June. Colorado, Texas and now Ohio. hmmmm. Don't you all feel so much safer??? Crimeny.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

14. Uhhhhh...... they sell them all day long at any one of many many outlets

so..... I don't see the significance of the fact that some were stolen. These people prolly cannot afford to heat their homes under the shrub economy.

[Lone_Star_Dem]

17. Baby it's cold outside....

Going to see alot more of this since heating fuel prices are through the roof this year.

[njdemocrat106]

20. Ah yes, all thieves are now terrorists...

in Bush's Murrica.

[Logansquare]

21. Terrorists stole my brother-in-law's gas grill last year

:)

[uppityperson]

29. terrorists ate my favorite candle. No, wait, it was my cat.

[mtnester]

22. Central Ohio is the scourge area for methamphetamine production

mobile labs, etc....and propane tanks are (somehow, don't ask me how) part of this process. We also have a serious problem with anhydrous ammonia thefts from farmers for the same purpose.

That's my spin on it...betcha this is where this goes.

[Lone_Star_Dem]

23. That is a good point.

I saw a news report here in Texas where they had busted a meth lab. There were dozens of portable propane tanks in the footage.

[genieroze]

24. That makes the most sense.

Speed freaks steal propane tanks.

[mn9driver]

26. Meth freaks want EMPTY propane tanks.

They use them to store anhydrous ammonia, which causes big problems for unsuspecting propane dealers when they try to reuse the contaminated tanks.

Full tanks are quite marketable this time of year in the construction business. I use about 30 pounds per day on the small jobs that I do. A larger site could buy a dozen of these tanks at a "discount" from the back of a truck and use them in a couple of days.

The use of propane to make weapons is an iffy proposition. The fuel-air mix has to be right, it needs to be contained, no one must notice the odor (all bottle propane is odorized), and then it needs to be ignited before it dissipates. There are a lot more reliable ways to blow things up.

This is just a media "terror news" BS story.

[Red State Rebel]

61. We've had 2 empty tanks stolen from our business recently

I'm suspecting Meth idiots.

[burn the bush]

25. normally i wouldn't worry about this but this isn't the first story i've

seen about the theft of many propane tanks. Across the country, not in ohio.

[genieroze]

36. That made me raise an eyebrow when I read it.

Then someone said speed freaks us them. Then another guy said no they use empty ones to store ammonia something.

[LifeDuringWartime]

55. maybe

they wanted a barbecue before they loaded them up with meth supplies :freak:

[Moderator]

27. I see links from other news sources

have been posted within the thread, but for future reference, trackingterrorism.com is not a suitable source for LBN.

Thank you

[Ima]

30. You can say that again!!

A couple months ago, I did a little 'digging' on that site, and couldn't get anything, not even who owned the site from Domain Reg.



Anybody that secretive has something to hide.

[alexisfree]

28. not terrosism...its called high gas prices..supply and demand

[Ima]

32. exactly

We will be hearing about stolen wood fences, as people will burn them to stay warm.

[NYC Liberal]

31. Look, if terrorists were really going to do something,

they wouldn't steal anything. They do have money, and there's no reason why they wouldn't just buy the damn things to avoid anything suspicious.

This knee-jerk reponse of "Terrorism!" "Terrorism!" everytime a crime is committed has got to stop. Though with the sorry state the media is in today, I suspect it won't for a long while.

[berni_mccoy]

34. You guys obviously haven't read the latest Presidential PDB

It's titled

"Bin Laden Determined to BBQ America" or something to that effect.

It's really more of a historical document... no need to worry.

[Vidar]

39. More distraction. Better call Hank Hill & his Texas buddies.

[burn the bush]

52. AAhhh! I see now. Hank Hill TEXAS get it? Hank Hill is one of them!

Nice try, but we won't be callin in mr. hill, thank you. Being from Texas, I'm sure that he's in cahoots with the chimp. Though, knowing Mr. Hills honesty, he probably is not aware that they use him for evil purposes.

[BiggJawn]

40. If they're "Terra-ists", why are they wasting their time...

..with the small tanks? They could go to a place like Skell-Gas and get one of those 500 gallon tanks like you see outside of farmhouses.

This happened near Denver, too. I still think it's poor people wanting to be warm. Of course, if they're caught, it's Gitmo for 'em as "Terra-ists"....

[BlueOhio]

42. Heat.

I am pretty sure thats why they took the tanks, I just spent over 500 dollars to purchase slightly over 300 gallons of heating oil.

a lot of people don't have the money to pay for fuel to heat their homes. I had to sell some stuff to be able to buy the heating oil.

Oil, yuck, I'd rather heat with propane. so much cleaner.

Propane and Propane accessory's

[AmerDem]

44. That sounds crazy

Over a short period of time they could collect as many tanks as they wish at a reasonable cost and without raising eyebrows from anyone through legitimate purchase.

[Liberaltarian]

47. couldn't/wouldn't terra-ists just BUY the stuff?

if they wanted it that badly for some type of explosive?

it's not like it's a controlled substance.


black marketeers.

[Phx_Dem]

48. If the truck was not stolen off lot...

They will have contract info to provide police, probably a CC #.

[pinniped]

56. Terrorists made the Golden State Warriors lose to the Timberwolves...

last night.

[rndmprsn]

59. hank hill would be mortified!

sorry i know this is serious, but couldn't resist </humor>

[Liberaltarian]

63. they thieves obviously wanted to taste the meat, NOT the heat-

i'll tell you what...

[daleo]

62. It's for the fourth annual Terrorist Cook-off and Jamboree

At Cheney's place. Everybody likes chili.

[CitySky]

66. YEE-haw!

I'll bring the cornbread.