SAN ANTONIO — $20,000 worth of property was stolen from a storage facility on the northwest side. The unit belongs to a San Antonio veteran.
What was taken, he says, carries sentimental value: Tools he acquired during his time as a mechanic after leaving the Army.
To many people, these may seem like material items. To Joshua Gomez, they represent a cherished time in his life. He hoped to pass them along to his loved ones.
Two months ago, Gomez moved his belongings to Extra Space Storage at 8378 Culebra.
Two weeks ago, he says one of the locks to his unit stopped working.
"No matter how many times we tried, this one would not work," said Gomez, trying one of the two locks on his unit. "It was clearly replaced after we moved in."
He didn't think twice about it until Saturday.
"I opened up all the doors and everything was damaged," he recalled, after his girlfriend called him to the storage unit, noticing a missing mattress.
When Gomez arrived and began inspecting his unit, he discovered his tools he used when he was a mechanic were gone.
"This is where I had all my sockets, wrenches, metric standard sockets, craftsman sockets, ratchets," Gomez said, pointing at an empty drawer in his unit.
Gomez notified management at the facility and filed a police report.
"I've had sleepless nights. I've been frustrated, angry," he said. "I feel like a kid who lost his toys."
While Gomez walked us to his second floor unit, we spotted cameras outside the facility and inside near the main entrance. On the second floor, however, we couldn't find one.
"I did notice in one of my uniform bags there was a piece of a glove, a purple rubber glove," said Gomez, alluding to an item left behind by the intruders.
Gomez pays $114 every month for his storage unit, including $47 that covers a $10,000 insurance policy.
He's hoping a clue he left on his tools may help make them easier to find. Some pieces had his initials on them: JG.
His message to the thieves?
"All I can say is may God have mercy on your soul."
McKall Morris, Communications and Sustainability Manager with Extra Space Storage, said the company is working on Gomez's insurance submission. In a statement to KENS 5, Morris said: "At Extra Space Storage, safety is a top priority. We are supporting local authorities as they investigate the unusual break-in. We will be reviewing our security at this location to see how we can improve."