Tourists’ stolen van found in Capitol Hill

For once, the story of a Seattle crime has a happy ending.

Capitol Hill resident Sean Sheffer’s parents and three younger brothers drove from their home in Las Vegas to the Pacific Northwest last week to pay Sean a visit and enjoy a summer vacation together. The family trip was cut short, however, when the Sheffers’ beloved van — which they had turned into their own camper, complete with fans, a bed, and a toilet — was stolen from a Capitol Hill parking garage.

On Friday, however, employees from Gary’s Towing located the stolen van in the 1100 block of Summit Avenue, less than two miles from where it had been nabbed. Sean Sheffer described said the van was found on a “discreet corner,” hidden well by bushes.

RELATED: Camper-like van stolen from Capitol Hill

“It was … the perfect area for a thief to really go through our stuff,” Sheffer told KIRO Radio’s Dori Monson.

The Sheffers credit Dori’s show with publicizing the description of the stolen van on the show last week and thus leading to its discovery.

“One of your listeners and Gary’s Towing — I guess it clicked and they looked around and they found the car … The employees knew what to look for, and I think it’s because they listen to your show,” he said.

Sheffer thanked Dori’s team and listeners for helping his family get their 2003 Chevy Express back.

“It was your listeners, and literally Gary’s Towing said, ‘Yeah, one of my employees had it on,’ and that’s when they recognized, ‘Hey, this is it,'” Sheffer said.

Without a vehicle, the Sheffers had been forced to find another way to travel the thousand miles back to their home.

“We were at Pike Place Market just sitting down at Ivar’s, literally debating how to get there,” Sheffer said. “We just started to contact family, and man, it was rough. It was very rough to figure out what we were going to do.”

The plan had been to drive as far as Utah and meet up with relatives, then to drive on to Las Vegas together. But the Sheffers didn’t make it further than Idaho when they found out the good news.

Unfortunately, all of the Sheffers’ luggage, including their clothes and electronics, were taken from the stolen van. However, after all that has happened, Sheffer’s parents are done looking for the criminals.

“By this point, my family had been through so much that they just wanted to go home,” Sheffer said. “They just wanted to take their baby and just drive straight to Vegas, back to their house, and get into a nice, cool pool.”

Despite the listener help in finding the stolen van, not every comment online has supported the Sheffers. Sheffer noted that people have made comments stating that the family shouldn’t have brought the van to crime-filled Seattle or even “shouldn’t have traveled in the first place.”

“It’s a little frustrating,” Sheffer said, noting that criminals “shouldn’t stop anyone from trying to have a good time while being safe.”

Still, overall, the Sheffers are amazed by the outpouring of love and support they have received from Dori’s listeners.

“Thank you so much for having us and listening to our story,” Sheffer said.

Follow @NicoleKIROFM