Homeowners Mary Chatten and Cecil Withrow are searching for the man who jumped their fence on the 2400 block of Washington St. and stole multiple items the couple uses to cook for their neighborhood.

Two deep fryers, burners, propane tanks, hoses and regulators, a 25 gallon pot and the aluminum basket that goes inside and a stand were missing from the home totaling about $750.

“He took everything, just all of it minus the lid,” Chatten said.

At 8:30 p.m. Feb. 6, Chatten noticed a vehicle across the street from her home that seemed suspicious, and she thought the building might have been getting burglarized. Chatten called 911 to report the possible burglary, but she said no police officers came because the operator told her she needed to know the address of the building and she did not.

About two hours later, Chatten said she let her dogs out in her yard and as soon as they returned into the home, a man is seen on surveillance cameras jumping the iron fence and taking their cooking equipment.

“At first they took the burner. They left. Then they came back in a different car and took the pot. Then they left again in less than a half hour,” Withrow said.

Chatten and Withrow enjoy cooking and often share their food with the community and people they see walking down the street.

They like to cook crawfish on Mothers Day, but said they will not be able to do so with the equipment gone. Chatten feels if an officer had come this could have been prevented.

“It’s sad that the neighborhood has to suffer because of what’s going on around us,” Chatten said.

The couple does not feel like their area of town gets the proper police patrol that it needs. Withrow said he feels like the items were stolen to prove that it could be done and not to actually use the equipment.

The crime has been reported to the Vicksburg Police Department and has been filed as a misdemeanor petty larceny and trespassing.

Vicksburg Police Department’s Capt. Sandra Williams and Chief Walter Armstrong said they would look into the report of the incident.

The couple has video surveillance of the crime that will be posted to The Vicksburg Post Facebook page.

Any with information about the crime is encouraged to call Central Mississippi Crime Stoppers at 601-355-8477. Callers remain anonymous and do not have to testify in court.