Store videos of pair stealing donation cans for animal rescue

A couple strolled into Jamaican Me Crazy in Haddonfield on St. Patrick's Day. As the woman called the store owner over to one side of the sales counter, the man swiped a charity donation can and tucked it into his jacket.

The same day, the pair distracted Nikolaos Lavdas, owner of The Bistro at Haddonfield, by asking him about catering and the store menu. There, the woman snatched a donation can by the register and hurried out. Her partner followed.

Donation cans are stolen every so often, but this time, the thefts were caught on surveillance video - twice.

The couple are wanted in both thefts and suspected in another from nearby Harrisons of Haddonfield, police said. All three cans belong to Furrever Friends, a shoestring animal rescue based in Woodbury.

"We need the money so badly. The standard checks in the mail, they're not coming like they did years ago," said Furrever board secretary Jennifer Andersch. "You're really dependent on the kindness of strangers."

Furrever Friends realized that the three cans were missing when a volunteer went to collect them March 18.

Full cans typically contain $200 to $250, Andersch said. There is no way to tell how much money thieves got.

The Haddonfield cans raised the most money among a dozen donor locations in Camden and Gloucester Counties, she said. They helped the group tackle about $5,000 a month in veterinary bills for homeless animals.

"Taking money from a charitable organization is almost like taking food out of a baby's mouth," said Lavdas, whose surveillance camera captured the theft.

On Thursday, he turned over a copy of the video to the Haddonfield Police.

Gary Reses, co-owner of Jamaican Me Crazy, along with his wife, Nina, reported their theft and shared their surveillance tape with police Sunday.

"I remember thinking it was strange that the guy left so quickly," said Reses, who was working alone that day.

Furrever donation cans have been stolen before. Almost two years ago, a large can - "something you would buy bulk pretzels in," Andersch said - was stolen from a PetSmart in Cherry Hill.

Andersch knows times are hard, but "I'm not pleased that people feel so desperate that they have to steal from other nonprofits."

Seven years ago, she and five others started the animal rescue to provide an alternative to overburdened county shelters. Each year, Furrever Friends places 450 animals, mostly cats, in adoptive homes.

The group has a $60,000 annual budget, with no overhead costs, and relies on a cadre of about 60 volunteers. Furrever operates a hotline - an answering machine in Andersch's home.

Bills are paid through donations and fund-raisers such as bake sales and the current moneymaker - the sale of scented candles.

"You don't want to be putting out [donation] cans," Andersch said, "for other people to profit off of."

The link to one of the videos is on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=khgnCBJw_zY. Anyone with information is encouraged to call Haddonfield Detective Sgt. Mark Knoedler at 856-429-4700, Ext. 254, or 856-429-3000.

Contact staff writer Darran Simon at 856-779-3829 or dsimon@phillynews.com.