Deputies find Poulsbo veteran's stolen vintage car
POULSBO, Wash. - The vintage car stolen from a Purple Heart veteran’s garage in Poulsbo has been found.
On Friday, Kitsap County deputies said they recovered the 1930 Ford Model A Huckster was recovered after an anonymous caller reported finding the car on Virginia Point Road near the intersection of Highway 308 in Poulsbo.
Deputies told FOX 13 the owner was notified and was brought the car back to his home.
According to the sheriff's office, a boat and trailer were also reported stolen from the garage, but they have not been recovered.
The investigation remains ongoing.
Original report from Jan. 17, 2023 below:
A Vietnam veteran is doing everything to find his stolen car—a rare, 1930 Model A Ford Huckster. He’s so serious he even contemplated offering up his Purple Heart in hopes of it being returned.
Gary McIntosh, 73, says someone broke into his garage between 10 p.m. Saturday and early morning Sunday, Jan. 15, and loaded up his rare car before getting away.
He believes the thieves were in and out within an hour after knocking off the lock to the garage.
He says clamps prevented them from breaking in, but they allegedly wrapped around the corner, bashing in the window making off with his prized possession.
"[It] sure looked nice speeding down the road on a sunny day," McIntosh laughed, remembering the good times.
McIntosh says "Louie the Lug", named after his wife’s father, is a total head turner.
"Everybody’s honking and waiving, and I give them the ‘Awooga’," McIntosh said.
The car was stolen a long with a boat and a motor.
"When I came in the driveway and seen the door up, it broke my heart," McIntosh said.
Holding back his emotions, the veteran says this is a tough loss.
"I just feel a vacancy here [in the garage], and in here [his heart]," McIntosh said.
Outside, he says the thieves left behind a trail of trash, hamburger and tool wrappers, empty drink bottles, even a full box of strawberries-- as McIntosh suspects they emptied out their getaway vehicles to load his.
"I sifted through, and I looked for any kind of receipts that might lead to a store or town, but I didn’t find anything," McIntosh said.
The theft of "Louie" couldn’t have come at a worse time.
"I had surgery yesterday," McIntosh said. "I came down with congestive heart failure 15 years ago, and I had a heart attack, a lot of stents."
Coping with the pain—physically and emotionally—the Veteran contemplated offering up his Purple Heart a reward to help track down his car.
"That's what I'm willing to do," McIntosh said. "I want it back, and I’m that serious."
So serious, he's posted about it on several social media groups, getting thousands of folks to help track "Louie" down, hopeful for it to return home.
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"It may show up, it may take time or if I find part of it, I can rebuild it," McIntosh said.
The Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office is urging anyone with home surveillance video or information about the car to call 911.