SANTA MARIA, Calif - Four people have been arrested for stealing fuel from several farms and ranches in the Santa Maria Valley. At least seventeen cases of the fuel theft was reported, totaling $5600.00 worth of fuel, said the sheriff's department.
In June, a deputy interrupted a burglary in progress on a local farm while the suspect was in the process of stealing the fuel. That suspect was arrested and posted bail. But was soon arrested again committing the same crime, said deputes.
During the following investigation, the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office Rural Crime Unit led to the identity of four more suspects from the Santa Maria and Nipomo area.
The following suspects were booked into county jail.
- Julio Rodriguez – Bautista, Santa Maria
- Martin Uvias Jacobo, Nipomo
- Leandro Diaz Perez, Nipomo
- Jose Antonio Rojas, Santa Maria
