EUGENE, Ore. – A Eugene based photographer had around $10,000 worth of her camera equipment returned to her after it was originally stolen from her car in the afternoon of March 25.
Elle Wayt said it was the mother of the suspect who returned the equipment to her in the afternoon of March 27.
When Wayt’s car was originally broken into at the McKenzie at Crescent Village apartments, she immediately turned to social media after retrieving security camera footage of the theft.
A screen grab of the video Wayt says shows the suspect as he breaks into her car and steal $10,000 worth of camera equipment including a drone on Monday afternoon.
“I posted my social media and it get 600 shares. It reached 12,000 people in my insights,” she said. “So that was pretty cool. But I’ve had a few people reach out and say it’s a specific person.”
After filing a police report and speaking with Eugene Police, she continued to do her own search for the perpetrator based on the numerous tips she was getting on social media stemming from the video of the theft.
“I did my own FBI detective work and I talked to a few people, and I figured out the persons mother’s name as well as his address and her address. Realized they lived at the same place, so I called his mom,” she said.
Wayt’s car window after it was broken into on Monday afternoon.
Wayt said she had the urge to reach out herself after talking to people on social media about the alleged perpetrator and his recent criminal history. She learned that he was once a co-worker and former friend and boyfriend to those providing her with tips. She said the thief was struggling in life and had been turning to crime. She credits her own sense of sympathy for reaching out directly to the suspect’s mother
“I don’t want to come at this with force, I don’t want cops to bang down the door and what have you,” she said. “But I was like okay I’m gonna call his mother and get my stuff back. “
Wayt said she was able to retrieve the suspect’s mother’s phone number. The mother answered the phone when Wayt called and after hearing the situation, appeared very emotional and apologetic over the phone.
“She was extremely distraught and saddened as most moms would understand. She realized he wasn’t home at the time, and so she went into his room and there was all of my stuff,” Wayt said. “And so she was able to find everything except for my hard drive. Which was a bummer but I was so excited. She met me at a Boba Head on west 11th and gave me all of my stuff.”
Broken glass seen inside Wayt’s car after the break-in. Wayt said she hardly ever leaves her equipment in her car. But this one time proved costly.
Wayt said her hard drive contained 10 years worth of her work as a professional photographer and videographer. After searching in a nearby field where she believed the thief ran off, she was able to locate the hard drive with the help of her boyfriend.
Wayt originally felt really sympathetic after talking to the distraught mother and was planning on rescinding her police report against the alleged thief.
“I was gaslighting myself a little bit. Like, I got my stuff back but I was thinking more and more,” she said. “This has happened to so many people and all of these amazing people have helped me get my stuff back. So maybe I should be getting police involved because no one deserves what I felt that day.”
Wayt, related to the mother and understanding how loved ones can go “down the a weird path,” but does not want to give the prospective thief another opportunity to strike others.
Wayt claimed she never knew who the alleged thief and his mother were until she was stolen from, when strangers on social media simply reached out with tips on who the suspect was after her post went viral.
Wayt intends on following through with the police report, and Eugene Police do have a case number for Monday’s theft.
In a statement, Eugene Police spokesperson Melinda McLaughlin said when it comes to theft victims reaching out directly to theft suspects or their family members, it can be a dicey prospect.
“A victim reaching out to a suspect or their family is not without risk depending on the involved parties and how they might react, access to weapons and other factors,” she said. “If there is a desire to hold someone accountable through the justice system, then there is a risk in reaching out.”
McLaughlin said that in order to hold any suspect accountable, investigators take certain steps to make sure they have probable cause that is documented and that have the best possibility of holding up in court.
She did not immediately identify a suspect in the case when asked. However, she called Wayt being able to retrieve all of her equipment a “win for her.”
“I cannot thank everyone in the Eugene community enough,” Wayt said of everyone online who shared the video. “This is my livelihood. This is how I make the majority of my income. It’s a huge weight. I’m just so grateful for everyone who shared it.”
