John Deere Loader Stolen from Construction Site, Fresno Officers Recover It, Arrest One
- August 17, 2012
- recovery stories
On July 22, 2012, the owner of a local construction company contacted the Fresno County Sheriff’s Department to report that a John Deere Front Loader had been stolen from his equipment storage facility in southeast Fresno. The Fresno County Sheriff’s Department verified the theft and entered the vehicle’s information into the state and federal crime computers, which automatically activated the LoJack transponder concealed in the John Deere. Video surveillance equipment recorded the theft as it occurred. Suspect information was developed and the Fresno County Ag Task Force was notified and continued the investigation.
A short while later, a deputy with the Fresno County Sheriff’s Department picked up the silent LoJack homing signals from the stolen John Deere on the Police Tracking Computer installed in his patrol vehicle. Following the directional and audible cues from the LoJack computer the deputy tracked the John Deere Loader to the vicinity of Belmont and Cornelia Avenues in Central Fresno. The location of the equipment was pinpointed to a ranch in the area.
Ag Task Force investigators responded to the scene and made contact with the occupants of the residence. Consent to search the property was obtained and upon checking, the investigators located the equipment concealed in a stand of trees near the rear of the property. The front loader was recovered intact and undamaged. The owner was contacted and responded to the scene to recover his property.
Two adult male suspects have been identified in connection with this case. One was arrested and the second is currently being sought. Both will be charged with grand theft and possession of stolen property. These crooks were not terribly creative; they drove the stolen front loader from the theft location to where it was recovered, using country roads – a distance of nearly fifteen miles.
The LoJack was installed in this John Deere Loader in November of 2005 at the request of the construction company owner. The value of the recovered unit is $35,000.