“For me, it’s hard to fathom why somebody would do this.”
Those are the words of Deanna Genske, Executive Director of the local non-profit organization that serves youth and adults with disabilities in Manitowoc County.
She tells Seehafer News that about a month ago, a thief or thieves cut off and stole a catalytic converter from their main production box truck.
“This is in early December when you’ve got vacation and other things going on. The truck had sat for just a few days longer than usual, and when our production coordinator went down to run our load, that’s when he saw that our catalytic converter had been cut off.”
Genske says authorities and members of her staff have gone over video surveillance footage countless times with no answers yet to be found.
“Where the truck is parked, it’s down by our warehouse, which is down from a hilly-like area behind Ascend Services. There’s another older straight-like truck parked in front of it, so it’s hard to pick up any activity on surveillance footage based on how it’s parked.”
This leads investigators to possibly think this was a “targeted act” that is putting a “huge strain” on some of Ascend’s daily operations.
Genske says her heart is burdened by what she calls this senseless act.
“This impacts office staff but more so our clients. We rely on that truck to go pick up work and bring it back to the companies that we work for. They (the workers) depend on that work so they can get a paycheck.”
Severe damage was done to the truck to get at and then cut off the Catalytic converter.
It was picked up to be serviced last Thursday and will cost approximately $11,000 to $16,000 to fix.
In the meantime, Ascend is currently relying on a second, much older truck, and if you have any information, please contact (920) 682-4663 or The Manitowoc Police Department.
