HOPE – Hempstead County Sheriff’s investigators are looking into bad checks used in the theft of three chainsaws.

According to a release from the Hempstead County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO), deputies were sent to the John Deere Tractor Co. shortly before noon Monday in reference to a theft. When they arrived the deputies were told an elderly man had entered the store to buy chainsaws for his three nephews who were going into the logging business.

An employee told deputies the man bought three chainsaws and paid for them with two checks. The total purchase amount was $1,692.49. One check was written for $922.15, while the other was for $770.34.

According to the report, the employee thought something was off about the transaction and went outside to get the tag number of a brown GMC Envoy the man was a passenger in. The employee reportedly noted the driver was a black male. The vehicle had paper tags, not a typical license plate.

The employee reportedly returned to the store to complete the transaction, accepting the checks as payment. Once done, the elderly man left the store and got into the GMC. The vehicle then headed toward Hope.

After the two had left the employee called the bank to verify the checks and was told the account they had been written on was closed.

HCSO investigators are looking into the situation.