One-of-a-kind car stolen

DECATUR, Ind. (WANE) - Mike Vandenburg worked for years on his 1965 candy red Shelby Cobra. "It's a one-of-a-kind automobile that can't be replaced. No parts on it will fit any other car because they are all hand-tooled and hand made," he says.

He kept the car inside a locked trailer in his business parking lot.  The trailer was then hooked up and locked to his Ford pickup truck.

When he stopped by there Sunday morning, the truck had been moved and the trailer was missing.

Vandenburg says he's devastated. "It's like I lost a family member. That car took five years to build and every part on it was custom made."

"I'm 67-years-old and that was my last hoorah, you might say, in cars."  He says he waited his whole life to get behind the wheel of the car, and now the dream has been taken away.

The sentimental value goes beyond Vandenburg. Its engine was built by one of the greatest motor builders in the world, the late John Lingenfelter.

"It's just a shame a thief has got it now and it should be back where it belongs. Bring my car back. It's my last race car. It would start my life over," Vandenburg told NewsChannel 15.