SALISBURY — Police investigators say they believe one person stole more than $5,000 worth of meat from a downtown barbecue restaurant.

A locked freezer at the Smoke Pit, 109 E. Innes St., has been broken into three times since Dec. 20, the Salisbury Police Department reported.

The thief took food that included a total of $5,000 worth of meat in the three incidents.

Police said the most recent theft occurred on Christmas Eve and was discovered Christmas Day.