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Pita Pit Is Looking For Brazen Chair Thief

By KEITH MORELLI

kmorelli@tampatrib.com

Published: January 9, 2009

TAMPA - The purveyors of pitas at the Pita Pit in Hyde Park are taking the pilfering of a chair very seriously.

They have posted the surveillance video of the swiping on YouTube and are offering a free pita for information leading to the arrest of the seat thief.

"There are no leads yet," co-owner Andrew Turek said Thursday. "The culprit is still at large."

The heist took place just after 8 p.m. Friday. The chair is described as having a black metal frame and a wooden seat and back.

"He dragged it right out the front door," Turek said. "We were all busy; people were lined up all along the food stations. My guy at the register didn't see him."

He said an employee outside spotted the man dragging the chair out the door and another man, possibly an accomplice, running out after him.

"The last thing I heard was that he dragged it across Howard Avenue and vanished into thin air," Turek said.

Employees bicycled around the area hoping to find the seat abandoned in shrubbery or a parking lot. Police officers stopped by for a pita later that night and were told of the theft, but no report was filed.

"We all had a little laugh about it," Turek said.

Still, he said, it would be nice to get the chair back.

On the eatery's Web site at www.sohopitapit.com is a crude drawing of the chair on a reward poster that states:

"Who steals a chair from the Pita Pit? Honestly."

A clip from the surveillance video shows the suspect buying food at the counter, with inserted quote bubbles pointing to him saying, "I am the idiot," and "I only have two friends and one of them should turn me in."

Another one reads: "I'm not allowed in Pita Pit anymore."

The missing chair was one of only 10 seats in the restaurant at 500 S. Howard Ave.

"To go from 10 to nine," Turek said, "is kind of a big deal."

SEE FOR YOURSELF

To see a video of the pilfered pita chair, go to TBO.com, Keyword: Pita chair.

Reporter Keith Morelli can be reached at (813) 259-7760.

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