Thief steals bounce house from Watsonville pumpkin patch

The Grinch came early this year. That’s what folks at a Watsonville pumpkin patch said after a very bold thief made off with over sized loot.

“I put so much of my heart into this place and to have somebody come in and really just kind of violate you and steal from you and kind of ruin a place that is meant to be good for people,” said Jimmy’s Pumpkins owner, Jimmy Dutra.

Dutra said every year he tries to add something new for the kids to enjoy. This year it was a pumpkin bounce house, stolen just three days after he bought it. According to the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s department the thief used bolt cutters to break open the patches gate, but in the process the suspect dropped a very important receipt.

A receipt from when the bolt cutters were purchased at a Gilroy Lowes. Authorities posted the surveillance photo of the suspect in the store on their Facebook page. Melissa Tanner Deoliveira drove all the way from Sacramento to the pumpkin patch, an annual tradition with her daughter. The loss of the bounce house left Melissa feeling a bit deflated.

“When you rob something, especially something that would create memories and an experience for kids that’s just an all-time low, it’s terrible,” said Deoliveira.

The 300 pound inflatable pumpkin was worth $1,200. That’s just one major item stolen from Jimmy’s Pumpkins. Visitors will find barbwire fencing around the lot and a heavy duty lock.

“Karma is that the guy dropped the receipt and now we have a picture of him so as everyone will see, they’re going to be able to see who this guy is and hopefully there will be good people out there who will turn this person in because we don’t want this in our community,” said Dutra.