A 30-year-old from Chesapeake in the United States has drawn the wrath of an entire neighborhood for stealing a jar of money containing only $40 from two children who were selling lemonade in front of their house last Wednesday.
“I was mostly surprised that it happened. I was also a little upset that someone would do that to us,” Rebecca Caldwell, 10, said in an interview with local media outlet WAVY on Monday.
Last Wednesday, the young girl and her little brother, Josh, were taking advantage of the nice weather to sell lemonade in front of their house in Chesapeake, Virginia, when a man allegedly parked his Toyota in front of them, according to camera footage reported by the American media.
Except that when Rebecca started to pour a drink for the man she thought was her next client, he instead grabbed the jar containing the money she had collected during the day, around $40 US (nearly $55 CA).
“He came over really nicely. And then he (took the pot), but my back was turned so I didn’t really notice,” the girl said.
The duo then reportedly rushed inside to find their mother, Annetta Caldwell, who called police to report the suspect, a man in his mid-30s with a goatee and tattoos.
If she doesn’t want to see him in prison for his actions, she would like him to be brought to justice to be taught a lesson, and perhaps do community service.
“They’re just innocent kids here, you know, running lemonade stands,” she sighed to WAVY.
The two ambitious children are said to have repeatedly run lemonade stands, but also pastry stands, to raise money for their older sister and eventually buy a dirt bike and a four-wheeler, to keep up with the children of other neighbors.
“I don’t think it’s really about the money. They just enjoy doing it, being here and seeing people. We don’t want that to be taken away from them. We want the fun, the innocence to remain,” said Ryan Caldwell, the children’s father.
In the neighborhood, many citizens came to show their support for the children, some even leaving them a generous tip, while a colleague of their father himself replaced the stolen $40 out of his own pocket.
