LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Lakeport Police officers on Tuesday recovered a truck stolen from a Lakeport business and arrested a Northshore woman for the theft.
Lakeport Police Chief Brad Rasmussen said officers arrested Sara Nelle Hendrix, 30, of Kelseyville after the vehicle was found in Nice.
Rasmussen said officers were dispatched to Napa Auto Parts, located at 1015 S. Main St., at 8 a.m. Tuesday to investigate the report of a stolen company box truck.
He said that upon their arrival the officers learned that store employees were conducting business operations and had the box truck unlocked with the keys in the vehicle.
Several minutes later, the employee associated with the vehicle found that it was gone and immediately called the police, Rasmussen said.
Rasmussen said Lakeport Police issued a “be on the lookout” for the truck to Lake County law enforcement.
At approximately 9 a.m., the Lakeport Police Department was notified that California Department of Fish and Wildlife officers located the box truck on Highway 20 in Nice, Rasmussen said.
The Fish and Wildlife officers stopped the vehicle and detained the driver and only occupant, identifying her as Hendrix, according to Rasmussen.
Rasmussen said Lakeport Police officers responded to the location and arranged for the return of the vehicle to Napa Auto staff, then arrested and booked Hendrix into the Lake County jail.
Her booking sheet listed charges including a felony count of taking a vehicle without the owner's consent, with bail set at $15,000. She also was remanded on misdemeanors of being under the influence of a controlled substance and possession of controlled substance paraphernalia.
She remained in custody late Wednesday, according to jail records.