An all-black 2015 Dodge Challenger Hellcat was reported stolen from Haltom High School’s parking lot on Wednesday by a person with a student ID card who police say hired a locksmith to unlock the vehicle.
According to Haltom City Police, the car thief reached out to All Auto Tech, a local locksmith company owned by Edgar Echemendia.
Echemendia, who police said is not a suspect in the case, told NBC 5 he communicated with a client via text message about unlocking the muscle car parked at Haltom High School. Echemendia shared a screenshot of the conversation with NBC 5.
In the text message exchange, the client said he needed a key for the Challenger and asked how much it would cost him. Echemendia replied, “200$.” A few texts later, the client stated, “My car is in school I don’t know if you are willing to come to my school.”
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“When I arrived to the place, the guy showed me the ID from the school,” Echemendia said.
Echemendia said the client also asked for a key fob to be programmed. However, Echemendia said he did not ask for additional identification.
“Sometimes the people need to show the insurance or everything, but in this case, I don't need that because the guy is from the school and he showed me the ID, you know,” Echemendia said.
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Echemendia said the school resource officer approached them after the alarm of the vehicle went off however, neither suspected anything unusual about the "student."
In an email, a spokesperson for the Birdville Independent School District said, “We take these measures seriously and work closely with law enforcement. However, we do not share specifics of the plan to protect the integrity of additional safety measures.”
According to the Texas Locksmiths Association, locksmiths are to follow guidelines by the Texas Department of Public Safety. According to the Private Security Act, the client must provide a government-issued identification and signed authorization that the customer owns the property or is entitled to legally access the property.
Echemendia, however, only had the cell phone number of his client, who he said took off without paying. Echemendia provided the phone number to NBC 5. That number has been disconnected.
The vehicle belongs to Jason Reddick.
“It’s not enough anymore to just lock your car and make sure it's locked. Probably need a wheel lock. Probably more than one GPS device,” Reddick said.
Reddick said two Apple AirTags were in the vehicle but that they were discarded.
"I guess they found it at some point, threw it out because it tracked it basically to Irving," Reddick said. "Right around Bedford, it was thrown out."
Reddick said he had let his son borrow the car for the day. Now, he wants accountability from both Echemendia and the person who took the car -- he said he'd also like his personal items returned.
“Everything my son owned for baseball was in that trunk of that car,” Reddick said. “Everything I bought him over the years.”
Reddick, meanwhile, has moved forward to submit a formal complaint to the Texas Locksmiths Association.
Haltom City Police said the investigation into the theft is ongoing.
