Florida man searching for 7-foot shark stolen off his front porch

PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. (WINK)—A Port Charlotte man is asking for help finding a 7-foot replica sandbar shark stolen from his front porch.

Nate Winkler was out of town attending a cancer benefit when someone took Sandra, a fiberglass replica of a sandbar shark he caught and released alive on a deep-sea fishing trip in Fort Lauderdale 10 years ago. 

Sandra took up 7 feet of wall space in front of Winkler's house. He's asking whoever took Sandra to please return her.

"Sandra, if you're out there, know we're worried sick about you," Winkler said.  "For those of who may have taken Sandra, please know we're not upset with you. We just want her returned safely home."

After 10 years in their home, Sandra has become a part of the Winkler family with her own personality. . The Winkler family recently gave their home a fresh coat of paint after spending years repairing hurricane damage and placed Sandra back on the wall.

"She likes hanging out, judging neighbors that walk by, and getting dirty looks from dogs. She does not bite. She is friendly. She is house-trained," Winkler said.

A missing-person poster was made by his friend to let people know she was taken.

"I'd really love it if it turned back up. I know that at this point it's unlikely, you know, we've gone past the first 48 or whatever," Winkler said.

Not only was a once-in-a-lifetime keepsake stolen, but also some peace of mind.

"It just kind of creeps me out. Times are tough enough, right? Like, we should be taking care of our neighbor and not stealing stuff," Winkler said.

Winkler did report Sandra when she went missing. The piece cost $2,500 to make and is now worth $4,000 to replace, qualifying the stolen shark as grand theft.

"I spoke to the detective yesterday. It is his first missing shark case. I asked if they had anybody more experienced on the force that had done missing shark cases before, but unfortunately, they do not," Winkler said.

Winkler is still holding out hope that his shark, Sandra, will be returned.

"I have the memories of catching it, I have photos from and things like that. So it's the sentimental aspect. It'd be great to have back. It's a really cool piece," Winkler said.

While he's disappointed, Winkler said he can only help but laugh at the situation that would truly happen in Florida.