DELAND, Fla. --
A flag was stolen from a Central Florida car dealership and then stuffed in the trash, police said.
Daniel Thorne, the manager at Primecar in DeLand, said the incident was captured on surveillance camera by the dealership's cameras.
He said somebody came in about an hour after the dealership closed on Tuesday night and took down the large 50-foot by 30-foot flag.
Thorne said he thinks it was a prank.
The flag was found stuffed into the dumpster.
"The fact it was dumped in the dumpster, it upset the Sheriff and I. I understand pranks, but not the American flag," said Thorne.
Thorne said the community raised $1,500 to help purchase the flag after the previous one became tattered and battered.
He said he would take the flag to the cleaners and put the flag back up, this time with locks.
If caught, the culprit could face grand theft charges.
"We've had the windows smashed and the computers taken -- that's fine -- but not the flag," said Thorne.
Authorities are investigating the incident.
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