CITRUS HEIGHTS, Calif. — For the past 5 years, Julbiee Christensen has transformed her front yard into a Christmas wonderland for the young and old of Citrus Heights to come enjoy.
“This year, we went a little bigger due to COVID, and when we were out working on the display last week, we noticed that there was a big gaping hole in our display... we realized that one of our favorite reindeer were missing,” Christensen said.
A woman was caught on camera stealing the nearly $200 Christmas decoration right from her front yard while she was home .
“She was driving by with her door open saying how cute it was, and while the driver went into our drive way, she jumped out and no hesitation, no disregard walked over to our lights and pulled them. (She) started laughing about it and ran across the street and took off,” Christensen said.
Christensen's front yard with all its décor is worth more than $5,000 and she said this isn't the first time she has had to deal with theft during the holidays. During Halloween, she said she was a target multiple times, and she had a Scooby Doo décor item taken one Christmas that was never returned.
“Replacing all that stuff and keeping up with the displays every year and trying to find ways to keep people from stealing or damaging it gets harder and harder every year,” Christensen said.
Citrus Heights Police Department is investigating the theft and said the woman responsible could face a $1,000 fine and 6 months in jail.
While there hasn’t been a trend of Christmas décor being stolen in Citrus Heights, police said you should document your outdoor Christmas décor through photos and serial numbers. If items don't have serial numbers, a driver’s license number or other identifying mark should be documented on the item and police report should be filed immediately after you notice something missing.
After posting on social media about the theft reindeer, Christensen received an outpour of support from the community. A man the community calls “Santa Robert” replaced the stolen reindeer, but she still hopes the woman in the video comes forward and rights her wrong.
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