'Pretty horrible:' 8-year-old child steals package from porch in crime caught on camera

BALTIMORE, Md. -- Package thieves are a common nuisance during the holiday season, but it's not often that you see someone put their kids up to the task. Police in Maryland believe someone directed an 8-year-old to steal packages from doorsteps.

If you have packages delivered to your door, you have a better shot than ever before this season of getting them stolen, and it turns out, thieves don't even care what's actually inside these boxes -- nor who's stealing them.

"Everybody was kind of shocked. Like, 'oh, this is something that's really serious,'" said Vallen Hardison, victim.

News of a pint-sized thief left neighbors in the Bel Air community with some super-sized concerns.

"I was shocked. I was like 'wow!'" said Hardison.

Hardison said her home surveillance camera was rolling when the little girl ran onto her front porch and ran off with a box of boots.

"It looks like there's probably a 6- to 8-year-old child that looks hesitant to do it, and it obviously it's painfully obvious that someone is directing them -- either a parent or it looks like an older person is directing that child to go commit the theft," said Major William Davis with the Harford County Sheriff's Department.

"I guess, you know, they're trying to do whatever they can to get the packages, you know? But it's a little kid. Who's going to think that a little kid is going to take packages? It's pretty horrible. I don't know why they took my package. I mean, I don't -- they don't even know what's inside. An apology would be nice. Hopefully this doesn't happen to any more people," said Hardison.