Repairs made to Pembroke Police Department vehicles have upset one Pembroke business owner.

During the city’s regularly council meeting on Monday at City Hall, Joey Burnsed, the owner of Burnsed’s Body Shop in Pembroke, expressed concerns about police vehicles being taken outside of the city for repairs.

“My grievance tonight is the city of Pembroke damaged a couple of automobiles, and I think they were trying to stop somebody that was trying to outrun the law,” Burnsed told the council.

Burnsed, a former Pembroke city councilman, said he gave a repair estimate of $2,767.45 and was not awarded the job.

After filing an open records request for the quotes on the repairs, Burnsed said he learned that Manuel’s Body Shop in Daisy gave an estimate of $4,662.80 for the repairs, and Valli’s Precision Collision in Statesboro gave an estimate of $4,829.62.

“The vehicle was taken to Valli’s to be repaired,” he said. “As a business owner and a tax payer of the city of Pembroke, I want someone to explain to me how that benefitted the city of Pembroke—taking business outside of the city for almost twice as much as my estimate.”

Burnsed said he had done work for the city before, as well as work for Bryan County, and felt he had been wronged.

Pembroke Police Chief Mark Crowe could not be reached for comment before press time on Tuesday. Read more in the May 15 issue of the Bryan County News.