‘It’s sad and it’s a shame:’ Victims reflect on reported French Quarter auto theft
A fun day turned frightening for one family visiting the French Quarter.
Two sisters say their mom’s truck was snatched from a parking lot while they were getting a sneak peek at the newly renovated aquarium.
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“I said ‘Mom! Your truck’s gone.’ Oh my gosh, it dawned on me,” said Brooke Thames.
That was around 4:45 p.m. on Monday, Thames and her sister Star Killebrew say. It was still daylight.
Speaking to witnesses, they realized they narrowly escaped an even more frightening scene.
“From what I remember him saying is that he had gone up there, and whatever he did, he was like, ‘Hey man, what are you doing?’ He said he saw him break out the window … Whenever that happened, from my understanding, was that he had a gun pulled on him. At that point, he said he put his hands across his chest and said, ‘Man, don’t shoot.’ He started going back to his family. He said we hung out safely and let him do his thing, and then they took off,” Thames said.
Thames and Killebrew say several other cars in the same lot had their windows smashed.
“We’re loading the kids in, our hearts, we were all shaking because it’s just a nervous scene to walk up on,” Killebrew said.
A few days later now, as they reflect, they’re thankful that it wasn’t even worse.
“Just to see it’s happening everywhere, and there’s this big grand opening this weekend, just to see not only us but multiple others in our lot become a victim and two more lots, it’s sad, and it’s a shame for sure,” Killebrew said.
With the grand re-opening of the aquarium, the sisters say their goal isn’t to say not to go, but instead to watch out and stay cautious in the city.
An aquarium spokesperson said Audubon doesn’t patrol private parking lots in the city. They do have security, they say, in Woldenburg Park and the aquarium complex itself.
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References
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- ^ For Buffalo shooting victims’ kin, Mother’s Day is a reminder of loss, a lesson in navigating grief (www.wdsu.com)
- ^ ‘It’s sad and it’s a shame:’ Victims reflect on reported French Quarter auto theft (www.wdsu.com)
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