ELM SPRINGS (KFSM) -- Elm Springs police located a man caught on camera taking a package from a family's front step after a neighbor caught him trying to return what he took.
On Tuesday, Brittany Schlinker saw a man on their security camera taking a package that contained their son's Christmas gift.
“The last few days have been pretty stressful, kind of confusing as to what I should do," Schlinker said Friday. "You know, do I need to reorder it, because of course I wanted it here before Christmas for him. So you kind of felt violated a little bit.”
When they saw the video, they posted it online and she said it was shared thousands of times.
Police said after it spread online, many called in with some tips and even some names.
“Once we get those names, we basically take them in order that we received them," Elm Springs Police Chief Jason Hiatt said. "We try to vet those people, you know looking at photos and records and what not trying to figure out if its them. The subject who returned it ultimately was on that list. He was about third down and we were working our way toward him.”
On Thursday, police received a call from one of Schlinker's neighbors who saw a man returning the package.
In surveillance footage from that moment, you can hear the man say, "I’m so sorry. I picked that up the other day, I was at the wrong address.”
Police explained the neighbor was able to get a name from the man.
That name was Kenneth Tabor.
Police found Tabor and they said he told them that he didn't steal a package.
Tabor told police that he was supposed to pick up a package for someone, but went to the wrong address.
Schlinker does not believe his story though because the box her package was in had her name and address ripped off.
A note was also left by Tabor that said he was sorry and had the wrong address.
Schlinker said this was the first time she had really done any online shopping and never expected to see her package after seeing the footage of Tabor taking it.
“I just assumed maybe he was from out of town," Schlinker said. "Police had told us it had been happening a lot with people coming into towns and snagging up several things and just leaving and you never see them again. I was kind of to that point, I just thought that was going to be our case as well.”
Hiatt said they have seen some of these thefts in Elm Springs during the holiday season.
He advised anyone who may have had a package stolen to report it so if they find it during another investigation, they can take action to return it.