Friday, July 27, 2007

Swimming pool & water nicked

PATERSON, N.J. It was a strange morning for the Valdivia family in Paterson, to say the least. Take it from Paul Magna, who lives across the street from them, and is still stunned by the news.

"You want a good story? The pool across the street was stolen during the night. With water in it," Magna tells WCBS-TV.

Not even the tabloids could make this one up. Edgar Valdivia and his wife Daisy awoke Wednesday morning to find their backyard pool -- 12-feet in diameter, 3-feet tall, filled with an estimated 1,000 gallons of water -- had vanished without a trace. Amazingly, whoever stole it apparently did it without spilling a drop of water.

"If I'm a crook, I don't go to a house to steal a pool," Mr. Valdivia says of the bizarre booty.

Mr. Valdivia tells WCBS-TV that by 5 a.m. on Wednesday, the pool had simply disappeared, with the ground around it completely dry. Both he and his wife were left scratching their heads. Water wings, perhaps?

"If I catch them or police catch them, you're going to jail," Mr. Valdivia says. "They will laugh at you in jail!"

Police say the heist was likely well thought out, and whoever pulled it off, it appears they may get away with it. Investigators continue to look into the case, but say they'll likely pass on a full-blown investigation.

"I don't understand. Like how can you lose a 300-pound pool?" says the Valdivia's daughter, Kimi.

It may be no one will ever know, except for the thieves likely splashing about somewhere wet with glee. In the meantime, the Valdivias are now trying to protect the rest of their backyard possessions, including chaining their grill to the house.

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