In the dark and cold morning hours, one of Dan Richey’s most prized carvings.
At around 6 a.m. on Saturday, two thieves managed to steal a 400-pound sabre-tooth carving that is estimated to be worth about $5,000 from Walkers Saw Shop on Shenton Road in Nanaimo.
Video surveillance cameras installed on the property managed to record the theft, which involved two people, who managed to cut a hole through a fence, and a pickup truck.
In the video, the thieves are seen backing a pickup truck down an empty lot beside the shop, where the carving was loaded up and driven away.
“Shocking,” said the carving’s creator, Dan Richey, later adding. “I can’t believe they’re picking that up and carrying it out of here. I just can’t believe that it just blows me away.”
The custom sabre-tooth tiger carving is about one metre high and one metre wide and is made of red cedar and has walrus tusks for teeth.
Richey estimates the carving is worth $5,000.
“I do these carvings to feed my family right so it is my bread and butter and I enjoy my carvings, a lot of people do love my carvings. I guess that’s one way of showing it is stealing it,” he said.
Richey posted the theft on Facebook this morning and tips about its whereabouts came within minutes. Nanaimo RCMP is investigating the theft but no one knows where the carving went at this point.
“Nobody knows where the carving is so if it’s still out there it’s going somewhere and it’s pretty unique, you can’t miss it,” he said.
Richey is now offering to carve a small sculpture for anyone with information that leads to getting the big one back.
Dean Stoltz
