This is a bodacious crime. A thief stole 2,000 gallons of gas from a Dallas, Ga. gas station while it was still open.
The manager of the Shell station on Charles Hardy Parkway in Paulding County says someone went right to the opening to the underground tanks and pumped gas into a large truck, possibly a tanker, taking $7000 worth of gas. It was believed that whomever committed the crime conducted a reconnaissance of the gas station and determined that overnight was the best time to pull off the heist.
“They must have been watching the station for a while,” he said. “It’s 24 hours and stays busy all the time.”
The manager also believes that someone who drives tractor trailers for a living stole the gas.
“The average person couldn’t do this,” said Khalil Balushi told WSB-TV. “It’s a professional.”
The massive loss of gas loss was only noticed when the service that refills the tanks noticed a steep drop in fuel level.
Unfotunately, there are no leads in the case and surveillance cameras did not capture any images of the thief nor the vehicle that the gas was stored into.
Balushi says the cameras were pointed at an entrance rather than the tanks. He says that’s been corrected, but that doesn’t help the case.
“It’s a lot of gas,” said Khalil Balushi. “It will happen again. What they do, they will turn around and sell it on the market (for) black market prices.”
The business relies on sales in the convenience store. They pay for the gas up front and only make pennies for each gallon that they sell.
Balushi hopes that investigators get a lead before another small business is targeted.
“Things like that will affect them,” he said. “It will run them out of business quickly.”
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