A Sandy tow truck driver said someone stole thousands of dollars' worth of tools from his work vehicle, leaving him unable to respond to crashes and emergencies.

Paul Flower, a heavy-wreck tow truck driver, told KUTV he found his truck's door rolled up and the tools gone on the morning of Saturday, Oct. 10. He said he had collected the tools over 15 years. Some belonged to his father.

Flower said he was furious when he discovered the theft.

The loss goes beyond the dollar amount. Flower said the stolen equipment is what he uses daily to clear wrecks and assist at accident scenes. Without it, he cannot do his job.

"I spent two grand because I bet you at a pawnshop, he maybe got a hundred bucks," Flower told KUTV.

Surveillance footage from a neighbor a few houses away showed a man checking the sides and bed of a different work truck the same day, according to KUTV. That man walked away without taking anything. Flower said he believes the two incidents are connected and that the suspect walked through the neighborhood, found his truck and took off with the tools.

Flower said the thief may have had experience targeting tow trucks. He told KUTV that most drivers store their gear in the same compartment on the traffic side of the vehicle, suggesting whoever broke in knew where to look.

The Sandy Police Department told KUTV that vehicle burglaries are among the hardest crimes to solve. Officers monitor pawnshop databases for stolen property, but Flower said he does not have serial numbers for his more valuable tools. That makes them harder to track.

Flower has filed a police report. He said he is not hopeful the tools will be recovered.

He went public to warn his neighbors.

Flower told KUTV his neighborhood is a good one, and people need to know someone is walking around breaking into vehicles. Sandy residents who spot suspicious activity around commercial vehicles can contact the Sandy Police Department at (801) 568-7200.