Man arrested for allegedly stealing 5 donated bikes from Blue Santa program

A man has been arrested for allegedly stealing bicycles that were being donated to the Baytown Police Department's Blue Santa Christmas drive for Texas families in need.

Christian Cortina, 22, was arrested on Tuesday and charged with Class B theft.

Baytown Police asked for the public's help to track down the suspect who five stole bicycles that were slated to be donated to their department's Blue Santa Christmas drive. Police say a tip came in after a citizen recognized the vehicle.

Police say two of the bicycles were also recovered.

Investigators say that five bicycles donated to Baytown's Blue Santa were stolen from O'Neal's Sports Bar and Grill located at 2651 S. SH Business 146 on Thursday, December 6.

Police say the suspect was seen driving a light/dark gray, 2000 Chevrolet Silverado pick-up truck.

According to police, four small pink Huffy bicycles and one small pink Dynacraft bicycle were stolen from the lobby of the restaurant.

Baytown's Blue Santa program has helped thousands of families for the last 25 years who may not have been able to give their children holiday gifts otherwise, police said.

"This year alone, through the Blue Santa program, we’ve been able to impact approx 244 families. That’s somewhere in the neighborhood of 750 kids," says Lt. Steve Dorris with the Baytown Police Department.

Detective Lance Watkins said O'Neal's Sports Bar has been a key part of the programs success for the last two years since the program depends mostly on donations.

Watkins said the Baytown Police Department is committed to the safety of its citizens and will not tolerate this type of crime against members of our community.

Baytown police are also using this incident to serve as a reminder to secure all your gifts this holidays season before the Grinch gets his hands on them.

"Don't leave anything in your car, lock it up. If you buy something expensive don’t go from one store to another. Believe it or not, the bad guys are watching you," Lt. Dorris says.