A Montreal-area businessman says his trailer with thousands of dollars of outdoor party equipment inside was stolen from the grounds of the SPCA's off-island branch in Vaudreuil-Dorion over the weekend.
Michel St. Arnaud owns a company called Amusement Experts, an equipment rental service for family events. He was hired by SPCA Ouest for a weekend open house to celebrate their grand opening.
St. Arnaud says he stored some of his equipment, including inflatable bouncers for kids and a cotton candy machine, in his trailer for the night on Saturday. During the night, he says someone tied his own pickup truck to the trailer and made off with it — leaving the company without all the fun stuff for the kids on the Sunday.
He says his missing equipment is worth around $25,000.
He posted the news of his loss to Facebook on Sunday morning, and he received several responses — most of them suggesting the thief didn't stray too far from the scene of the crime.
"One of them was around 9:30 [Sunday] morning, someone spotted the trailer on Highway 30, going toward Montreal," he says. "And then someone spotted the trailer at the Kirkland Walmart at 11:30 in the morning. Then he was spotted later in Pointe Claire at the Reno-Depot."
He also suggests the thief is someone who lives in the West Island, or off the western tip of the island.
"Because where the trailer was parked was a side road in the countryside," he says. "It's not a road that a tourist or visitor would know about."
The trailer in predominantly black and purple, and is clearly marked with the company's name and services. The thief is thought to have used a white pickup truck to haul the trailer away.
The Surete du Québec is investigating. St. Arnaud says he's offering a $1,000 reward.