A Memphis man charged with stealing several large appliances from his next-door neighbor had an interesting defense for having the items in his backyard.

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Curtis Buford, 50, told police he is a “scrapper,” and that he found all of the items “on the street.”

Those items included a Kenmore washer and dryer, a black BBQ grill, deep freezer and several other items.

The only problem was officers found a trail made from a dolly leading from the backyard of the victim’s home to Buford’s backyard.

The victim told police all of the appliances and other items were gone when she got back to her home on Wednesday. She said someone broke in through the rear window and left through the back door of the home on Vineyard Haven Place.

When officers found these items in Buford’s backyard, the also noticed the deep freezer, which still contained ice from “recently being unplugged.”

That is when police found the trail leading from the woman’s home to Buford’s backyard.

Police said the estimated value of everything that was stolen is about $1,490.

Buford was charged with aggravated burglary and theft of property over $1,000.

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Fulton DA Fani Willis (center) with Nathan J. Wade (right), the special prosecutor she hired to manage the Trump case and had a romantic relationship with, at a news conference announcing charges against President-elect Donald Trump and others in Atlanta, Aug. 14, 2023. Georgia’s Supreme Court on Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2025, upheld an appeals court's decision to disqualify Willis from the election interference case against Trump and his allies. (Kenny Holston/New York Times)

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