Police hunting for porch pirate who stole $2,700 wedding dress, neighbors on alert

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WSYX/WTTE) -- Many people have seen it before, video of a porch pirate boldly walking up to someone's home in the middle of the day and stealing a package. Columbus police are searching for a man who did just that in German Village on Tuesday.

The suspect stole a package that had a $2,700 wedding gown inside on East Whittier Street.

"We'll see that it is delivered and I'll run home, because I work right downtown and I will put it in the house and then go right back to work. I just couldn't get here fast enough that day," said the bride's fiancé.

He said police helped in the search.

"My fiancée unfortunately walked, her and I and a friend walked most of the alley to see if they ditched it," he said.

But, the group didn't have any luck.

"I was home that day. I just wish I would've seen something," said neighbor Andrea McLane.

She has lived in that part of German Village for about 25 years.

"To know that somebody has come in and taking away your privacy, violated your privacy, and just it makes you feel really unsafe," she said.

She feels for the couple.

"I would've felt so awful, you know, finding that dress takes a long time," she said.

Sarah Karlsberger owns The Archive gallery on the street. She has allowed neighbors to ship packages to her store for about three years now.

"I had a small package stolen. It wasn't something expensive, but it was something that couldn't be replaced, so I knew that feeling of not knowing," she said.

Go inside the shop, and you would likely see a pile of packages waiting to be picked up.

"I expect to see UPS and FedEx just about every day," she said.

Police said if you recognize the man from the video, contact them immediately.

Contact Detective Thomas in the Burglary Unit at 614-645-2127.

In the clip, you can see the thief wearing a Cleveland Cavaliers T-shirt and smoking a cigarette, before leaving with some sort of cart.