Neighbor’s report leads to arrests for Los Banos home package thefts

Police are thanking a resident who reported two suspects stealing a package from a neighbor’s doorstep, leading to arrests for multiple thefts.

The Los Banos Police Department received information from the resident of two suspects stealing a package at 1:47 p.m. Tuesday in the 1600 block of South Seventh Street, including a vehicle description and license plate number, according to a news release.

Minutes later, police said, Officer Kris Hew saw the vehicle, a silver Nissan sedan, heading west on Pacheco Boulevard. Hew stopped the vehicle and spoke with Los Banos resident Jose Antonio Garcia Espinoza, 21, and 30-year-old Freedom resident Maritza Ruiz.

Hew determined Espinoza was driving without a valid license, police said.

As officers searched the vehicle, they found the stolen package, which contained clothing and kitchen items. They also found stolen property from a car burglary that was reported over the weekend, as well as property belonging to other residents of the Los Banos area, officers said.

Espinoza and Ruiz were arrested on allegations of theft, conspiracy to commit a crime, burglary and possession of stolen property, the release states.

Espinoza was in custody Wednesday in the Los Banos Police Department jail on a $54,360 bond, according to Merced County jail records.

Ruiz was being held at the John Latoracca Correctional Center on Wednesday on $47,000 bond, according to jail records.

Officers are in the process of contacting the stolen items’ owners, who police believe may also be victims.

Reports of package thefts from the doorsteps of homes happen around the holidays every year. The Atwater Police Department on Tuesday released images of a suspect involved in a theft and is seeking more information leading to an arrest.

This story was originally published December 14, 2016 at 7:49 PM with the headline "Neighbor’s report leads to arrests for Los Banos home package thefts."