Over on Reddit, Travis Young posted an urgent plea, asking people to help bring to justice the people who apparently stole his son's cello at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music on Sunday. The worried father even has surveillance footage of the allegedly (and rather stylish) thieving couple in action.
Young writes:
Hey Reddit, my son's very expensive cello was stolen from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music yesterday. Here are the surveillance pics from security that show a young couple making-off with my son's primary instrument. FWIW, this instrument is one of the most expensive things I have ever owned. It was stolen around 4:05 PM on Sunday, September 16th, 2012. These people are nonchalantly making-off with a full-size cello that was purchased when my son graduated from a smaller cello when he was 12. We've owned it for 11 years. He's in the collegiate division at the San Francisco Conservatory and it is not only the vehicle for his ability to obtain a classical music degree, but is also his sole source of income, as he uses it in performances and recordings. We'll be doing a media blitz tomorrow with local stations and the SFPD, but I'm hoping the community can help. Any leads are incredibly appreciated.
Above we posted one image that, for obvious reasons, obscures the couple's faces. Young does, however, have a slew of images taken from the surveillance cameras. (He claims that the security team at the school gave a copy of the footage to the detective on the case, who then burned a copy for him.) His son, who sometimes can be seen playing at local transit stations, has a cello with distinguished scratches "underneath his bow hand caused from playing many hours a day for years." Young also points out that the cello is an '87 Bubenreuth, "handcrafted in a city by the same name in Germany, as indicated by the internal sticker."
Of course, this couple could have picked up the wrong instrument accidentally. Or... something. Anyway, if you know anything, please contact Travis Young via Reddit or call SFPD
