TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Aaron Barnes says he feels like his family’s car was stolen twice at the most vulnerable moment in their lives.

On April 27, one week before Barnes’ wife donated a kidney to him to help save his life, their 2011 Ford Flex was stolen out of their driveway.

“I went outside to take the kids to school and said, ‘Where’s the car?'” Barnes recalled.

The couple reported the theft to the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office and learned it was spotted on a traffic camera in Wesley Chapel.

“Then it went dark,” Barnes said. “We heard nothing.”

The family had to travel and stay in Jacksonville for six weeks for the surgery and recovery. While there, they received mail that a friend picked up for them and learned Autopros Towing & Recovery in Tampa found the car abandoned at an apartment complex in Hillsborough County and said the family would have to pay to get it back.

“I called them and explained the situation,” Barnes said. “They didn’t care. I’m hurt. I’m disappointed that that’s the world we live in where people just don’t care anymore.”

Barnes called the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office and says the detective reached out to the tow company as well, but also had no luck.

When Barnes and his wife made it back to Tampa, they learned the tow company had auctioned off the car on June 5.

“If they’re the law, and they can’t go back and get a stolen vehicle, I don’t know, it could happen to anybody at this point,” Barnes said. “Your car, his car, anybody’s car get stolen, it ends up in a tow yard, the cops have no authority to get it out. Tow people, apparently got more authority than the cops.”

State law gives tow companies 30 minutes to notify law enforcement when they pick up a car so it can be returned to the owner if it was stolen. Investigator Shannon Behnken paid Autopros a visit, but no one answered the door. An employee did answer the phone and claims law enforcement failed to tell them it was stolen.

That’s something both the Hillsborough and Pasco County Sheriff’s offices dispute. A spokeswoman for Pasco says their detective reached out to Autopros about seizing the vehicle, but it was auctioned anyway.

The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office sent this statement:

“Regarding the discovery and collection of Mr. Aaron Barnes’ vehicle by Autopros Towing and Recovery in Tampa, the towing company submitted the vehicle information into the Online Reporting System for Impounds/Repossessions, maintained by HCSO. The HCSO Communications Bureau checked the vehicles entered as Impounded/Repossessed from April 28, 2023.  It was discovered that the vehicle in question was reported stolen through Pasco County Sheriff’s Office. After communicating with Pasco County Sheriff’s Office, an HCSO deputy went to the tow yard on 11105 N Nebraska Avenue in Tampa on April 29, 2023, at 3:42 a.m. Our deputy met with an employee of Autopros before writing up a report on the stolen vehicle. We made attempts to contact the owner of the car, Mr. Barnes. After several unsuccessful attempts, we updated PCSO, understanding that the car would remain at the impound lot until a detective gave further direction. Autopros had several communications with HCSO and PCSO about the stolen vehicle.“

Behnken reached out to the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles and was told the car was noted as stolen on April 27, but is no longer shown as being stolen and is still titled in the name of Aaron Barnes.

Behnken continues to dig into how this happened and what can be done about it now.