Donation jar for two young boys who died in fire stolen

MERCED, Calif. (KFSN) -- A donation jar full of cash was stolen on Sunday. Taha Eltareb, the manager of the Chevron gas station and store, said the money was for two boys who died in a house fire last week.

"It really got us mad you know," Eltareb said. "I deal with a lot of stuff from people trying to steal. But that was one of the shadiest I think."

RELATED:House fire kills 2 young boys in Merced

On Sunday afternoon a man walked into the store bought cigarettes and took the jar from the counter. It was all caught on surveillance cameras.

"That's just crossing the line for us. We haven't seen him but hopefully we see him and try and get the money back for them," he said.

Eltareb said he's only seen the suspect in his store maybe one other time. They believe he may live in the area. Eltareb mentioned he would have been happy to help the suspect out if he was in desperate need of money.

"If you needed money that bad you could have asked us. If you are hungry ask me I'll feed you, it's no big deal. If you want something to drink, I got you no problem. But don't steal," he explained.

Eltareb thinks there was about $60 in the jar. The woman who started the donation drive said they've raised about $400 for the family and is upset this would happen. Eltareb posted the video, which shows the man stealing, on his Instagram account. The video has been seen close to 20,000 times. They've been getting a lot of support from the community.

"I've gotten a lot of messages from so many different people that they want to donate," he explained.

If you are interested in helping out this family the store, which is off of MLK and 11th, in Merced is still accepting donations.