California man’s GPS-equipped tractor leads deputies to arrest theft suspects

By Felix Cortez

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    MONTEREY COUNTY, California (KSBW) — Sheriff’s deputies are giving credit to a Royal Oaks man for equipping his $25,000 tractor with a tracking device that helped lead investigators to the two men who allegedly stole it Easter Sunday.

Action News 8 obtained exclusive video of one of the thieves driving off on the tractor in the early morning hours while the homeowner was out of town.

“When I saw the video of them driving off, I thought to myself, you picked the wrong house, the wrong guy, and the wrong tractor to mess with, and your day is going to end very poorly, which it did,” said tractor owner Mike Lint.

Fortunately for the owner, he equipped his tractor with a tracking device, which led deputies to a home on the 12-hundred block of San Miguel Canyon Road about two miles from where the tractor was stolen.

Two men were arrested who were in the process of painting the red tractor blue.

“They did a pretty good job, actually, but unfortunately, law enforcement got to them right in the middle of the paint job and so now it’s half blue and half red,” said Lint.

The tractor was one of two tractors stolen in just the last week. Another was stolen from River Road and found ditched under the highway underpass in Soledad. So far this year, the Monterey County Sheriff’s ag crime task force has taken 37 crime reports, most of them for grand theft, burglary and vandalism.

Investigators say tracking devices and surveillance cameras can help make sure you get your stolen property returned.

“Some of that information that you can provide to our detectives is always helpful, always appreciated, and does make it easier to try to track and locate and return your property if in fact, it’s stolen,” said Rosas.

“You better think twice with all the security cameras that people have on their houses nowadays, and you just don’t know who has GPS tracking devices on their vehicles that you’re thinking about stealing,” added Lint.

Two men booked into the county jail learned that the hard way. Rene Landa, 60, and Jose Gonzalez, 44, both of Royal Oaks, are now charged with possession of stolen property and conspiracy to commit.

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