Auburn man caught stealing gas from Placer County vehicle, sheriff’s officials say
A Placer County deputy arrested an Auburn man caught stealing gas from a county-owned pickup last week, causing over $2,000 worth of damage to the vehicle.
The gasoline theft occurred about 4:40 a.m. Oct. 6 at the Placer County Community Development Resource Building in Auburn, the Placer County Sheriff’s Office said Tuesday in a Facebook post.
The deputy responded to an activated burglar alarm at the building and spotted fuel draining into a plastic container under the county pickup as well as a gas can in the parking lot, according to the Sheriff’s Office. There was nobody else around, so the deputy waited for a suspect to return to the vehicle.
The suspect, later identified by the Sheriff’s Office as Zoltan Gergely, returned to the pickup about 10 minutes later. Sheriff’s officials said the deputy saw Gergely lay down beneath the pickup’s fuel tank while holding an electric drill and a metal screw.
Gergely, 47, was arrested on suspicion of felony vandalism, along with misdemeanor charges of petty theft and vehicle tampering. The Sheriff’s Office said the cost to repair the pickup’s damage was estimated to be more than $2,000.
Gergely remained in custody Tuesday at the Placer County Jail with his bail amount set at $75,000.
