Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station detectives tracked down a burglary suspect in Bakersfield, after recently widening their search.
“Long story short — facial recognition was not working down here, but we sent it up to Kern County because we thought he might have been living up there,” said Detective Chad Dowdy of the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station.
Deputies were able to obtain the license plate off the truck the suspect was driving, he said; however, detectives quickly learned those plates had been stolen from someone else’s vehicle.
The fact that the owner’s vehicle was in Bakersfield led detectives in that direction, and through communication with deputies from the Kern County Sheriff’s Office, they learned their suspect was a parolee at large who was, at that point, already in custody for an alleged violation of his parole, in the Bakersfield area.
Deputies are in the process of preparing an arrest warrant to be ready for when the suspect is released from custody in Kern County, Dowdy said.
He’s sought for questioning by SCV detectives regarding possible property-theft charges, Dowdy confirmed.
On April 23, Sheriff’s Station officials posted the picture with caption information that stated: “Can you ID me? SCV Sheriff’s detectives would like to talk to me about a package that was stolen off of a homeowner’s doorstep in Castaic.”
Anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact Dowdy at 661-255-1121, ext. 5146.
Anonymous tips for crimes not in progress can be submitted to LACrimeStoppers.org by calling (800)222-TIPS (8477), or by using the website LACrimeStoppers.org .
In a separate post, Sheriff’s Station officials also offered tips to help prevent residents from being victim to mail and package thefts:
- Use the letter slots inside your Post Office for your mail, or hand it to a letter carrier.
- Pick up your mail promptly after delivery. Don’t leave it in your mailbox overnight.
- Don’t send cash in the mail.
- Tell your Post Office when you’ll be out of town, so they can hold your mail until you return.
- Report all suspected mail theft to the Sheriff’s Station and the Postal Inspector.
- Connect with your neighbors on the social network NextDoor.com and form a neighborhood watch where you can watch each other’s mailboxes (and homes).
- Some homeowners use video surveillance cameras to detect motion in front of residence.
- If you are expecting a package, use a tracking number to follow your package’s status and request that your package delivery requires a recipient signature.
- Utilize mail or text notifications regarding the status of your delivery; and consider purchasing a locking parcel delivery box that can be bolted down or otherwise secured.
- Consider in-store delivery or have packages delivered to a reputable package pickup location, such as Amazon Locker or other business that accepts package deliveries. Residents could also request that the delivery service leaves your packages at a side door, back door, an enclosed porch or other area where the package will be out of sight.
- If permissible, have your packages delivered to your workplace.
