AUSTIN, Texas — For months, KVUE has reported about the staffing challenges the Austin Police Department (APD) is facing. For some, this has led to longer wait times when asking for help, leaving some Austin residents upset.
One man said he's a victim of a recent string of burglaries in South Austin. David Harrison realized at around 5:40 a.m. that someone had broken into his car.
"I got to looking in the car," Harrison said. "My backpack was gone, which had a few personal things like my wedding ring and another ring. And then ... two laptops that I used for my other work. My weapon was missing."
He had thousands of dollars worth of things taken. Among those items was a pair of AirPods. Harrison was able to track his AirPods to a nearby apartment complex.
He called APD to let them know where they were and to ask for help.
"'Could you send an officer?'" Harrison said he asked APD. "And they said, 'We'll put you in the queue.' And so, that was at 2:15 p.m. I kept calling every couple of hours saying, 'Look, where's the officer?'"
The officer showed up 15 hours later, according to Harrison. When police arrived, Harrison said they did not enter.
Now it's been about a week since the burglary, and Harrison is still waiting for a follow-up call from a detective.
"I know police officers, and I feel bad for them," Harrison said. "I know that they're understaffed and under-respected. But I tried to stress to them that, you know, I'm a law-abiding citizen. And the only people that this is hurting are the people that abide by the law, not the people who are breaking the law."
Harrison's biggest worry is not getting the gun that was stolen back into his possession.
KVUE reached out to APD for comment and an update on this case. The department said it would get back to us.