The Smith County Sheriff's Office Is Asking For Your Help In Identifying A Tailgate Thief.

East Texas is "truck country" and apparently a few folks out here are willing to go to great lengths to make sure that their truck has one.

After checking out this story my idea of opening up a "Tailgate Store" is going out of the window because some are resorting to pulling up to car dealers and stealing them off the lot so I know my idea is dead on arrival.

The Smith County Sheriff's Office Shared The Details About The Crime On Their Facebook page.

Smith County Sheriff's Office
Smith County Sheriff's Office
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According to the Sheriff's Office, on Wednesday, June 14, at approximately 7:09 am, an unknown male suspect driving a white colored Toyota Corolla drove up to J&L Auto Sales, located at 12310 Highway 155 S near Tyler.

The suspect spoke to the business owner and asked for pricing on a Ford F350 that was parked on their lot.

Smith County Sheriff's Office
Smith County Sheriff's Office
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The business owner went inside to get the price and when he came back out, he noticed the suspect was gone and so was the tailgate of the vehicle he had asked about.

The business owner reviewed cameras and footage to see what happened.

Smith County Sheriff's Office
Smith County Sheriff's Office
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The business owner observed the suspect drive to the F350 and remove the tailgate. The suspect then drove out of the lot in an unknown direction of travel on Hwy 155. Don't know how he managed to get that BIG tailgate into that LITTLE Corolla but he made it shake and now cops are looking for him.

Take A Look At This Guy..

Smith County Sheriff's Office
Smith County Sheriff's Office
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If you have any information on the identity of this suspect or information pertaining to this case, please call Detective Max Velazquez at (903) 590-2618 or the Smith County Sheriff's Office at (903) 566-6600.

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