Thief steals woman’s motorized wheelchair in Ann Arbor

Video captures the thief taking off with the chair

ANN ARBOR, Mich. – A disabled woman living in Ann Arbor is left in a difficult situation after her motorized wheelchair was stolen from the front of her home.

The theft taking place in during the day was caught on camera.

UPDATE: Couple donates motorized wheelchair to Ann Arbor woman targeted by thief

“First of all, I never would have imagined that I would only have one leg and now I can’t even get around,” said Sheletha Evans.

Evans is an amputee who has lived in her Ann Arbor apartment for years and never had a problem. But Tuesday morning, a thief stole her power chair and left her with what appeared to be an oversized stroller and a container of half-eaten fruit.

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“I think that’s like for maybe an older child that has disabilities. That’s not for an adult, at least not one my size,” Evans said.

A neighbor’s surveillance camera caught the incident that happened at about 9 a.m. Tuesday. Video shows a man coming from behind a building with the stroller-like chair as he makes his way across the sidewalk, coming back through the parking lot. A few minutes later, the man can be seen taking off in Evans’ wheelchair.

“It’s heartbreaking. Who does that? I feel like she was being followed,” said Evans’ friend Evette Meckl.

Evans currently uses a manual wheel chair, which is challenging because the sidewalk near her home isn’t wheelchair accessible.

“Please bring my chair back. That’s my lifeline. I know I shouldn’t have left it outside and some people might say it’s my fault but that’s still cruel,” she said.

Evans has dialysis in the morning, and to make matters worse, the incident happened when she needs a second kidney.

Click here to donate to her GoFundMe page.

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About the Author

Victor Williams joined Local 4 News in October of 2019 after working for WOIO in Cleveland, OH, WLOX News in Biloxi, MS, and WBBJ in Jackson, TN. Victor developed a love for journalism after realizing he was a great speaker and writer at an early age.

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