The coaches say they were frustrated at how the Dallas police department handled their case.
When cheerleaders perform at a game, they often steal the show. But the Ace Athletics cheerleading team had their personal items stolen while they were in Dallas over the weekend competing in a national tournament.
"We had just hit a flawless routine. We went back and everyone was getting their bags and you started hearing 'my bag is missing, my bag is missing.' And you look and you're like, my bag's missing too," said Katelyn Reszotko, cheerleader.
The National Cheerleading Association's competition is a prestigious tournament held at the Dallas convention center. On Saturday night, the Ace team put their bags in what they thought was a secure area. Five minutes later, several members discovered that their bags were stolen. They filed reports with the Dallas Police Department, who they say was dragging their feet.
"My daughter's phone…I was tracking it. And I went up to them with an interception and the officer shook his head and said, 'oh, that's a pretty bad area,'" said Liz Karson, parent.
Jeff Siegal, the team's coach and owner, said the surveillance cameras in the center which could have helped in the investigation weren't working. He said the thefts affected the performance.
"The other said thing...is the kids were in second place on Saturday night. They never knew they were in second place because they were so upset. We never heard the scores being read. Instead of kids being pumped up and energized, ready for that next day, they couldn't do that," said Siegal.
Dallas detectives are also investigating reports that cheerleading teams from California and Washington had items stolen as well. A spokesperson for the police department said detectives are doing what they can to solve the case.