There’s no love lost for thieves of any kind out there, but those in the drag racing community take the snatching of race cars rather personal. That’s the case because, unlike a television set or a yard ornament, racers pour their heart and souls into their racing machines, and for many, the car is just another member of the family. And like one big brotherhood, when you take from one, you effectively take from all.

Just over a week ago, Georgia grudge racer Jerry Jordan parked his familiar race cars, a Chevrolet Malibu known as “Romeo” and a Ford Mustang coined “Juliet” at a Kangaroo gas station near his hotel in Orlando in the late evening hours of December 13th. When he returned the following morning at around 7 a.m., he discovered the Ford F-350 pickup truck, trailer, and both cars had been stolen without a trace. Orange County Sheriffs deputies and detectives immediately took on the case, and Jordan and friends of Jordan’s turned to the internet and social media to get the word out on the missing race cars and equipment.

According to news reports, the Ford Mustang was discovered mostly intact (but with obvious signs of tampering) last Thursday, but the Malibu and both the truck and trailer — and the perp — were still at-large. That search continued through the weekend before a sad discovery we’ve seen far too often was made in the woods near an alert Orange County residents’ home. There, large parts of the “Romeo” Malibu were found stashed in the bushes, including the roll cage that had been completely cut from the car, as well as the doors and trunk. The rest of the car, with presumably all of the parts that the thieves deemed valuable intact, is still missing, as is the rest of Jordan’s racing operation.

Those with information on the whereabouts of Jordan’s property and those responsible are urged to call Orange County’s Crimeline at 800-423-TIPS(8477).