The Case of the Missing Tow Truck

Tow truck operator Dave Ferrara Jr. knows what it’s like to have the shoe on the other foot, or the hook on the other fender, or … whatever.
Two weeks ago, Ferrara exited his Sam Rittenberg Boulevard apartment and walked to where his tow truck was supposed to be.
Only thing, all he found was an empty parking space at the back of the complex, and a few stray pieces of glass on the ground.
Ferrara, who is a 13th generation Charlestonian and works for a family business run by his dad, David, Sr., estimates he’s personally towed 10 cars a day on average every day he’s worked for the past three years.
The Ferraras have run Hawk Services and Towing for the past eight years, after a career in auto parts. The company currently services contracts with just about every public and private entity, except for the City of Charleston.
Ferrara sleuthed that whoever had taken his tow truck had probably punched out the window, ripped open the ignition box, and jammed in a screwdriver to start the vehicle.
“Lots of them get stolen, talking to people I work with and other tow companies who also have the same lift and wheel, the same year, make and model.” As proof, what had been his daily-driver, was bought at an insurance auction, having already been stolen in the past.
In fact, the family had worked for months to secure the appropriate vehicle identification number (VIN) for the truck so that all the paperwork would be squared away. The original thieves had stripped the VIN plates and everything of value before it went to auction.
The company had finally gotten the VIN plates and had them installed. Last week. And then POOF the truck was gone.
The Ferrara family, who run Hawk Services and Towing, had paid a bunch for the truck, but only had it insured for a little over $21,000 because of all the mechanical trouble the “pollen-green” beauty had had. A top-of-the line, with all the bells and whistles, and rims and lights, runs close to $90,000.
The truck was in and out of the mechanics garage every other day, Ferrara says. And that may provide the best chance of getting the truck back, if whatever mechanic gets handed the keys for its next repair puts the VIN number into a computer.
“But, seriously, how do you track down a repo truck?” asks Ferrara, hoping for answers. Until answers or the truck turns up, he’s forced to drive the old truck he learned to drive on.
“It’s a 1997 Ford F-150, also pollen-colored. It’s a lot older … and it’s haunted me my whole time, and I keep coming back, having to drive this thing,” says Ferrara.
Ferrara never expects to see the tow truck again, despite its unique coloring, and he knows it won’t likely be found.