FESTUS, Mo. – It looks like just a pile of junk. For Brian Peterein, it's a business called Perfect Air Heating and Cooling.
Outside his building at 503 Warne St., Peterein fixes up old air conditioning units.
Sometimes, he gives them away for free. Otherwise, he sells them for $150 to $300. That's thousands of dollars cheaper than a brand-new unit, he said.
"They go to a lot of people," Peterein said. "We've had people with cancer. We've had just people that didn't have any money that needed them."
Thursday evening, there were only a few units left in the pile. There should be at least eight more.
"They took all the better units, Peterein said. "It's almost like they knew what they were looking for. So, they pretty much left just the scrap and the junk that's here now."
At around 7 p.m. Wednesday, Peterein's surveillance cameras captured two men pulling up in a white pickup truck. One by one, they load the units into a trailer.
"I think they were men with a plan," Peterein said. "To come in and just get a whole trailer full like that, and with nobody seeing them, it really surprised me."
The units were not locked up.
"I was raised that you just don't steal from other people," Peterein said.
Several years ago, someone stole some recycled material. That's what prompted him put up nine cameras and some "no trespassing" signs. Now, he hopes the footage will lead to an arrest.