Man Wants $1,000 To Return Soldier's Camera

PHILADELPHIA -- Many NBC 10 News viewers have responded with offers of help for a local soldier who lost his camera at an Eagles game. They wrote with outrage after hearing about a man in Syracuse who offered to return the camera -- for $1,000.

But NBC 10 heard from a lot of good-hearted people, too-- many offering help to the soldier.

Roger Schreiner understands why Army Spc. Elwood Wrigley's missing holiday photos mean so much to him. Schreiner is a former Army ranger who still keeps pictures of his bootcamp buddies at his Internet office in Fishtown. He said that those photos helped him get through the 1991 Gulf War in Kuwait.

"If you look in the footlockers of these soldiers, what do you see? You see photos of the people that they care about, photos that get them through every day," Schreiner said.

Schreiner, like many others who e-mailed NBC 10, were upset at Michael Crook. Crook said that he had found Wrigley's camera at last Sunday's.Eagles/Bengals game. He sent NBC 10 some e-mails and pictures as proof and he directed us to his Web site. He offered to return the photos for $1,000.

In a phone interview he made no apologies for asking for a finders' fee.

"To be perfectly honest, I have absolutely no remorse," Crook told reporter Vince DeMentri.

In turned out the photos weren't Wrigley's. The soldier's disappointment, though, turned into anger after learning of Crook's offer.

Wrigley was touched, though, by Schreiner's offer to pay a $500 reward for the return of his camera.

"Thanks Roger, from the bottom of my heart. Thank you. It's good to see there are good people out there. Especially being a veteran himself, he understands. He understands what is the value of it. It's irreplaceable, honestly," Wrigley said.

Wrigley has volunteered to go back to Afghanistan for a second tour and he leaves next Tuesday.

Schreiner wasn't the only one to express his disgust at Crook asking for money to return Wrigley's photos. Here are several e-mails received by NBC 10:

"It makes me sick to know that people would do that to someone, especially with pictures that are so precious," said Erika, of Hamilton, N.J.

"It's such a shame that someone would do that to another person, let alone a person who is fighting to keep our freedom," said Melissa Whittington.

"Although I don't have the camera, my wife and I would be happy to get a replacement one for him, if it would help," said William Callahan.

Wrigley told NBC 10 that he doesn't care about the camera. He just wants the memory stick. He was sitting in section 228, row 15, seats 8 and 9 of Lincoln Financial Field. He lost a Sony Cyber-shot digital camera.