Folsom police arrested Michael Patrick Woulfe, 39, of Rancho Cordova, Sunday night on suspicion of using stolen purchase orders to obtain almost $14,000 worth of gas over the past three months.
Woulfe was booked on suspicion of burglary, as well as suspicion of altering the purchase orders and forging signatures. The police investigation revealed that Woulfe may have been involved in up to 80 illegal transactions, officials said.
Gary Hamner, owner and president of the Peoples Automotive Group in the Folsom Auto Mall, described Woulfe as a former employee who was around long enough to figure out what managers thought was a "bullet-proof system."
"He broke into our store and stole a purchase order book," Hamner said. "He went into the middle of the book and pulled out about 100 purchase orders."
Investigators believe that Woulfe also knew the names of the people authorized to sign those purchase orders and forged their signatures.
He would line up vehicles four and five in a row to get gas at several local service stations. The scheme started unraveling when a dealership manager noticed one of those lineups and asked the gas station attendant what was going on. Investigators eventually caught Woulfe on videotape from a gas station surveillance camera, Hamner said.
Jail records indicate that Woulfe had a warrant from Sacramento Regional Transit for not paying his light rail fare and he also was wanted by Sacramento police for blowing off a jaywalking ticket.
