His stolen pig cooker was found abandoned and intact on the side of Highway 158/258 just on the outskirts of Murfreesboro.

Garner said a Chowan University spotted and matched it from photos she saw online. Murfreesboro police assisted and Garner drove to the Hertford County town to take it back to his business in Weldon.

The only thing different about the cooker and its 14-feet trailer was that it had been used to haul pine bark. Why pine bark was hauled is a mystery to Garner. “I guess they wanted flower beds,” he joked.

Garner, who discovered the cooker was stolen from his Everything Auto business next to Frazier's in Weldon this morning, was sickened to discover the $10,000 cooker missing. He planned to use it to cook at a friend's wedding in the Goldsboro area this weekend. “It's just unreal. I called my friend and I'm just happy every thing worked out for his wedding. It was just sitting there wide open. They stole the hitch off my dump truck and left the hitch on the ground.”

The trailer, which was stolen twice before it was used for the cooker, originally belonged to a friend and one of their grandparent's passed away. Garner used the trailer to honor his friend.

Garner has installed security measures at his business to prevent its theft.

Anyone with information on the theft, which also included the theft of tools from his shop, is encouraged to call Weldon Police Department at 252-536-3136 or Crimestoppers at 252-583-4444.