PORTLAND — Someone stole a jug Thursday containing about $3,000 in donations earmarked for the victims of the tsunami that struck Japan in March.

Employees at Yosaku, a Japanese restaurant at 1 Danforth St., noticed that the jug, which was sittting on a counter near the door, was was missing around 8 p.m. They notified police at 9:20 p.m. after determining that the jug had actually been stolen.

The restaurant had accumulated the money by selling T-shirts and conducting other fundraising activities.

A witness later told police she saw a man walking west on Danforth with what appeared to be a large jar of money, which she thought odd but not enough to report it to police at the time.

Police do not yet have a good description of the thief.

While New England wrestles through the road closures and power outages following Tropical Storm Irene, Japan continues to suffer the effects of the March 11 tsunami, which killed more than 15,000 people, caused the meltdown of three nuclear reactors and hammered the national economy.


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