Police: Thieves sneak away with aluminum canoe at Stratton Park
By Christina Chapman — cchapman@morrisdailyherald.com
Morris police are looking for witnesses and information on a canoe that was stolen from Kayak Morris over the weekend.
Sometime overnight Saturday and into Sunday, someone stole the company’s 17-foot Tracker Canoe that was locked to a park bench at William G. Stratton State Park, said Detective Alicia Steffes.
Kayak Morris operates out of the park, renting canoes, kayaks and other recreational items to be used on the Illinois River or I & M Canal.
Company owner Janee Matteson said the thief or thieves used two five-inch concrete pieces to break the lock.
“They kept smashing the lock until it gave way,” she said. “It’s hard to walk off with a 17-foot aluminum canoe. It had to be two people carrying it.”
Matteson also has a storage unit at the park for the rest of her equipment that they attempted to break into, but were unsuccessful, she said.
The canoe is valued at $700 and was her best canoe, she said.
Steffes said the large canoe was either carried to a vehicle and driven out of the park or put in the water and paddled out, so it’s likely someone saw something.
The canoe has an identifying marker, Steffes said. It has a patched hole near the front of the canoe.
If anyone has information on this incident, they are asked to call Morris police at (815) 942-2131 or Crime Stoppers, which is anonymous, at (815) 942-9667.
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That's pretty sad, but hey, I guess somebody REALLY wants to canoe. Too bad they didn't just rent the canoe like everybody else!
