It had already been a bad time for a Sugar Land firefighter. He'd lost a friend, Houston Firefighter Anne Sullivan.
While standing casket guard at a funeral home, a thief was breaking into his car taking duffle bags, a laptop, tools and an iPad mini.
Sugar Land Officer Matthew Shockey quickly realized this wasn't just another break-in.
“I got there and it was a firefighter, he was in full dress uniform, if you will,” Shockey told a KHOU reporter.
Shockey knew the firefighter was already distraught, and this break-in was just too much for him. He wanted to do what he could to cheer him up.
“If that wasn’t enough, they just lost four firefighters, so they’re already grieving and it’s a somber time,” he told the reporter.
The firefighter was carrying all the items because he was going to go straight from the funeral home to work.
Since he doesn't use Facebook, the officer turned to his friends who do. He set up a fund to raise money on PayPal so the items could be replaced.
And, he wanted to do it anonymously
After he raised about $1,000, Shockey dug into his own pocket to come up with another $300 to replace the items.
“We dropped it off last night, I tried to be anonymous. It was people from all agencies that donated,” the officer said.
Shockey told the reporter the story isn't about him. "It's about the thief who was cold during a time of mourning."
