Officers with the Pikeville Police Department are investigating a donation jar theft caught on surveillance camera.

It happened Thursday inside a Taco Bell.

Officials believe the donation jar was for an employee’s child.

Many know the holiday season is usually known as a time for giving.

However, some take advantage of those asking for donations.
Officials said surveillance footage from inside the restaurant shows one man taking a donation jar.

“The male took the donation jar, concealed it. He noticed that one of the employees was close to him and he puts it back up on the counter,” Slone explained.

After the employee leaves, you can see a man, who police believe to be Jeremiah Vance, taking this opportunity to put the jar back in his pants and walk away.

Slone said this is not the police department’s first encounter with Vance.

Detective Collins informed Officer Slone that employees of McDonald’s believed Vance was trying to get another customer’s receipt in order to return to try to get free food.

Vance was also seen on surveillance at Taco Bell removing tickets or receipts from the cashier counter at one of the registers prior to taking the jar.

“At the end of the day, we’re just trying to recover the amount, I think it was $150 that was raised for this kid. It was a co-worker’s child,” Slone pointed out.

Police charged Jeremiah Vance, 23, of Pikeville, with second-degree robbery and first-degree possession of meth. Plus, the theft of unlawful taking charge he received during the accused donation jar theft.

Vance was also accused of attempting to steal TVs from Pikeville Medical Center on Sunday.

When security attempted to confront him, officers said he started fighting with security personnel.

He also knocked a woman to the ground when attempting to leave the hospital.

Vance, officers said, was wearing a Pikeville Medical Center shirt with the tag still on.

“I figured he put the t-shirt on to try to disguise himself as an employee so as he was taking a TV out, no one would recognize him,” said Officer Taylor. “I have not had an arrest like that where someone was trying to disguise himself as an employee while taking something.”

He told officers he worked at PMC and that is why he was wearing the shirt.

When police searched him, officers said they found three clear plastic bags. Two of the plastic bags had what officers believed to be meth.

Officers also found three pill bottles belonging to someone who worked at the hospital.

Vance went into a room not open to the public, police said.
All stolen property were returned to PMC and at the end of the day, police are just trying to recover the amount, believed to be around $15,0 that was raised from the donation jar.