Rindge police are actively investigating a string of cash box thefts in the Rindge and Jaffrey area.
Jessi Heys, co-owner of Grateful Harvest Farm in Jaffrey, said that her farm stand was one of the honor system enterprises targeted since early August.
“It’s very disheartening to have this happen so early into our journey here. We’ve only had the farmstand up for about a month and a half, and we’ve only been in the area for 18 months,” Heys said on Wednesday.
Another Jaffrey woman, who did not want to be named in the newspaper, posted a warning on Facebook to people in Jaffrey and the surrounding area who have farmstands to “BE ON THE LOOKOUT” for a “male and female diving a dark/navy blue Jeep Liberty.”
“Today 8/15/19, at about 5:45 pm, a dark blue Jeep Liberty stopped at our firewood stand, (a pay-by-honor system stand) smashed the cash box, and stole the money from it. The driver was a heavy-set woman. The passenger, a thin built man. They had pulled off to the side of the road, the passenger then got out of the Jeep, destroyed the cash box, stole the money, and then they took off. This is the second time someone has broken into our cash box and stole money. The first time this happened was late evening on August 5th. … I believe that this theft was not random, and that these people are targeting other ‘honor system type’ stands in town.”
Heys said she knew there was a possibility for theft when she decided to operate the farm stand on an honor system basis, “but we didn’t expect it to happen so soon and we really didn’t expect it to be so blatant.”
Heys said that the same two people took money from her stand four or five times.
“I even spoke with them the third time they came by and told them ‘I saw you yesterday, I know you’re stealing from us, we’re putting up cameras,’ but the thieves returned anyway.
She said she reported each of the thefts.
“We’re not the only ones who have reported to the police. The individuals are known to the police,” she said. “It’s just a matter of compiling the statements.”
Heys said the thefts compelled her to install a lock box for payments, and she now puts out less money for making change. She said she doesn’t want to dwell on the negative experience, though.
“The overwhelming amount of support and positive feedback from the community has overshadowed this event as a whole,” she said, adding that she’s excited about the area’s enthusiasm for local businesses, small farms, and young people in the community. “We have even more customers now than we did a couple weeks ago.”
Rindge police Sgt. Rachel Malynowski said Wednesday that the investigation is active and ongoing.
Heys’ husband, Chris, is an area native. The couple had been living in California until last year when they moved to Jaffrey to pursue their longtime dream of starting a farm.
“We had goats and chickens, we’re not totally new to farming,” she said, but their current venture is the most they’ve taken on so far.
“We’re going to keep up the produce as long as we can for the season,” she said.
She hopes to modify their greenhouse to provide a small amount of greens throughout the wintertime, in addition to a variety of baked goods. She said they will continue to offer raw goat milk, yogurt, and take advance orders for rabbit throughout the year.