An Army veteran took matters into his own hands when a crook stole a truck right out of his front yard.

James Huff, a 20-year veteran, says he served three tours overseas. He was outraged when someone stole his 2002 Ford truck.

He painted a piece of plywood and left it in his front yard as a warning message to the thieves.

“To the worthless dirt bag that took my truck,” Huff wrote on the sign. “I gave 20 years of my life, serving in three armed conflicts to protect YOUR freedom. A freedom you pissed away when you stole what I earned. I hope your mother sees this so she knows YOU STOLE FROM A SOLDIER!”

Huff’s white truck has a hydraulic lift and Army stickers in the back window. It has the Texas license plate number GBL-2166.

"If they get caught, their freedoms are gone, freedoms that I fight to give them. To provide, to protect," Huff told KDFW.