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Pleasanton police made two arrests Saturday after one was spotted apparently trying to remove a catalytic converter from a car in an apartment complex near the Zone7 Arroyo pumping station.
Police were called by a resident who saw a man crawling under his Toyota Sequoia. Since the car owner had previously had his catalytic stolen and had installed additional security measures to prevent it from being stolen a second time, the suspect was unable to remove it.
The suspect crawled under another Toyota nearby when arriving police found him.
Police Lieutenant Scott Rohovit said they found Eduardo Labitoria under the Toyota attempting to remove a catalytic converter. Officers ordered him to come out from under the vehicle, but when he did, he took off running, climbing over a fence into the Zone7 area
Rohovit said police surrounded the area and eventually apprehended Labitoria without incident.
Further investigation revealed Labitoria’s vehicle had five catalytic converters inside, all believed to have been stolen. They also found a second suspect, Diana Cabaccang, in the car, who police said was in possession of methamphetamines.
Labitoria, who also had an outstanding felony warrant for his arrest, was charged with tampering with a vehicle, possession of burglary tools and delaying and obstructing an officer.
Cabaccang was charged with possession of a controlled substance.
Labitoria and Cabaccang, both from Stockton, arrested and taken to Santa Rita Jail, Rohovit said.
Where is Zone 7 Arroyo pumping station?
Great work Pleasanton Police! Glad the RP was not victimized again. Have to find out what options there are to secure converter. Wonder how long a Rap Sheet these two have.
Thank you to the Pleasanton Police Department!! We are so lucky in Pleasanton to have a police force that is so effective and dedicated to keeping our city safe!
What street are the apartments located?
As usual, the suspects are from out of town – in this case, Stockton.
Makes me wish I could afford to live in a gated community.
Good job to PPD for nabbing the crooks!
@wondering
The Contra Costa Times article linked below says that they were caught near 4700 Chabot Drive, which appears to be a just bit west of the Hacienda Business Park area. Thought that the area was just businesses and didn’t know that there were any apartment complexes in that area.
Hope that word gets out to the criminal community that the Pleasanton Police force is very good and efficient, and that Pleasanton is not a good place to go to commit crimes.
http://www.contracostatimes.com/breaking-news/ci_26803098/pleasanton-catalytic-converter-suspect-caught-red-handed
4700 Chabot Drive? It probably happened at the Extended Stay America at 4555 Chabot Drive which is why they don’t identify the “apartments”. Glad they caught them.
Good job PPD!
Crime doesn’t pay!
….unless you work for the government, then it’s expected.
I bet the thieves planned on using BART to make their getaway.
Catalytic converter theft is a growing problem that is not uncommon due to the ease of stealing the part. The easiest target are mostly SUV’s or trucks that you can quickly crawl under without having to jack up the vehicle. A good thief can cut and dismount in minutes, often even from an owner’s driveway at night. Best deterrent is to mount a catalytic converter lock. An example can be found at Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Monat-Technologies-The-Catlock-1-0/dp/B004UC1FSA/ref=sr_1_4?s=automotive&ie=UTF8&qid=1414537000&sr=1-4&keywords=catalytic+converter+lock
Great job aware Sequoia owner and Pleasanton PD. I wonder if this is the same guy who stole the converter from my Honda Element and from two Honda CR-V’s in Bishop Ranch last week, I have a call into the PD to find out. These perpetrators do up to a couple thousand dollars damage to get $150 bucks for each converter from unethical metal recyclers, sure glad they got this guy off the street.