Beehives returning to Merced County after ‘sting’ operation results in arrest
The Merced County Sherff’s Office took part in a “sting” operation that caught an alleged beehive thief this week.
More than 170 stolen beehives are being returned to Merced County after an operation conducted by the California Rural Crime Prevention Task Force, of which the Merced County Sheriff’s Office is a member.
On Feb. 6, deputies in Merced County took a report of 172 stolen beehives from an agricultural property in unincorporated Gustine, according to a Sheriff’s Office Facebook post.
After an investigation, deputies with the Yolo County Sheriff’s Office located the stolen bee boxes in their jurisdiction.
The hives were tucked away in a remote corner of northeastern Yolo, according to that county’s Sheriff’s Office. Deputies were alerted Tuesday to the cluster of hives and called in agricultural crime investigators, who discovered the bee boxes’ distinctive markings had been altered to conceal their owners’ identifying marks.
Investigators staked out the boxes Tuesday and saw their suspect return to continue modifying the hives.
The man, identified as a 46-year-old Sacramento resident Leonid Terzi , was still clad in his beekeepers’ suit when deputies took him into custody.
He was booked into the Yolo County Jail, where he was held in lieu of $10,000 bail, according to jail officials.
The stolen beehives — valued in the high tens of thousands of dollars — were recovered and will be returned to their rightful owner, the Merced County Sheriff’s post said.
The case remains under investigation. Anyone with information may contact Detective Thomas Griffin at 209-385-7472 or send an email to SheriffTips@CountyofMerced.com.
This story was originally published February 11, 2026 at 2:58 PM.
