LoJack System Helps Fresno HEAT ATTF Recover 2017 Ford Focus and Arrest the Thieves
- April 18, 2019
- Law Enforcement
The owner of this Ford contacted the Fresno Police Department to report that their vehicle had been stolen from their residence sometime during the previous night. The Fresno Police Department verified the theft and entered the vehicle information into the state and federal crime computers which automatically activated the LoJack® System concealed in the Ford.
About forty five minutes after the LoJack was activated, an investigator with Fresno HEAT, the Fresno County Auto Theft Task Force picked up the silent LoJack signal from the stolen Ford with the LoJack Police Tracking Computer (PTC) that are installed in patrol vehicles and aircraft. Following the directional and audible cues from the PTC, the investigator tracked the vehicle to a residential alley near First and Ventura Avenues in central Fresno. The investigator found the vehicle was unoccupied. He summoned assisting units and established surveillance on the vehicle. A short time later an adult male entered the car and attempted to drive away. The investigators converged on the vehicle forcing it to stop and took the suspect into custody. The suspect was arrested for vehicle theft and possession of stolen property. Follow-up investigation led to the identification and arrest of a second suspect later in the day.
The vehicle was recovered intact and undamaged; it was stored pending release to the owner.
The LoJack® System was installed in the Ford in November 2016 by Lithia Ford of Fresno in Fresno, California.