Most of time when we do these bait stings, it is part of an investigation that leads us to target specific people that will be exposed to the bait, or targeting a problem area. To utilize the man power and the costs of man hours, it is usually part an an investigation that can justify it. But different areas have different budgets and regular operations, so I say that strictly from my experience.
A passing citizen securing the vehicle isnt unusual in these situations. Honest people ignore an unlocked vehicle with a camera (or something of value in the front seat), or they report it to the property manager of the parking lot, or they lock the car. Thieves steal it.
Also, you was making some good points in you your discussion with Titus Quinctius Cincinnatus about "entrapment". To take the discussion another step, entrapment takes effort to get someone to do something they normally would not do. If an undercover was making an effort to get someone to steal the items, and that otherwise honest person showed reluctance, but the UC persisted with pressure to get them to steal it, then they would have an entrapment argument. This is not an off the cuff opinion, this is something we deal with in court and we go over all the time. Texas Law Defines Entrapment:
Texas Penal Code § 8.06. ENTRAPMENT.
(a) It is a defense to prosecution that the actor engaged in the conduct charged because he was induced to do so by a law enforcement agent using persuasion or other means likely to cause persons to commit the offense. Conduct merely affording a person an opportunity to commit an offense does not constitute entrapment.
(b) In this section "law enforcement agent" includes personnel of the state and local law enforcement agencies as well as of the United States and any person acting in accordance with instructions from such agents.
Again, I cant speak for your State.
It would be one thing for property to be easily accessible if someone wanted to steal it and they went ahead and took it. It would be another of there was an undercover officer nearby who made statements like "Take it and I'll split the good with you. Go ahead. No one is around. I'll watch for you." Or something similar to get the person to agree to commit an act that they wouldn't normally do.
As best as I can determine, the points made by Titus are essentially that he doesn't like sting operations, so the police shouldn't do them.
This particular operation might not have yielded any arrests so they might not run it in the same area for a while. Manpower deployment and budgets are not things that Management likes to squander if the results are not positive. That doesn't mean that they won't run it again in the future if circumstances warrant it. Especially around Christmas!