Huge stash of stolen vehicles found north of Castaic

KHTS has the crazy story:

In what industry officials are calling the largest theft ring in their company’s history, detectives seized more than 35 stolen vehicles, heavy equipment and recreational vehicles during a 10-hour search warrant operation late Monday night.

The find came following a LoJack stolen vehicle recovery system hit near the Interstate 5 Golden State Freeway and Templin Highway Monday morning.

The deputies followed the hit to a remote 60-acre property in a rural area of Northern Los Angeles County.  Near the location, in the 31000 block of Faimham Street, Castaic, deputies discovered a Bobcat Skid-Steer Loader that had been stolen from the Mission Cemetery, Mission Hills, on January 5.

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A search warrant was obtained and after a 10-hour operation, involving more than 15 detectives and sheriff’s personnel, investigators recovered vehicles and other items they believe to be stolen.  All told, the property and vehicles had a value estimated at well over 1 million dollars.  During the investigation, detectives found and recovered 35 vehicles and countless other items including motor homes, John Deere and Kawasaki Mule utility vehicles, and even an Airstream camping trailer reported stolen out of Santa Clarita more than 3 years ago.

In what industry officials are calling the largest theft ring in their company’s history, detectives seized more than 35 stolen vehicles, heavy equipment and recreational vehicles during a 10-hour search warrant operation late Monday night.
The find came following a LoJack stolen vehicle recovery system hit near the Interstate 5 Golden State Freeway and Templin Highway Monday morning.
The deputies followed the hit to a remote 60-acre property in a rural area of Northern Los Angeles County.  Near the location, in the 31000 block of Faimham Street, Castaic, deputies discovered a Bobcat Skid-Steer Loader that had been stolen from the Mission Cemetery, Mission Hills, on January 5.
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A search warrant was obtained and after a 10-hour operation, involving more than 15 detectives and sheriff’s personnel, investigators recovered vehicles and other items they believe to be stolen.  All told, the property and vehicles had a value estimated at well over 1 million dollars.  During the investigation, detectives found and recovered 35 vehicles and countless other items including motor homes, John Deere and Kawasaki Mule utility vehicles, and even an Airstream camping trailer reported stolen out of Santa Clarita more than 3 years ago.

The LoJack official used the words “organized crime” to describe the find, especially in relation to the stolen construction equipment. Do we have a local mafia ring jacking construction equipment and storing it way up Castaic way?

I hate to sound like a City Slicker, but this story just confirms one more perception I have about living in the SCV: there are many strange and interesting things that go on in the canyons, hills and mountains around us. I’ve ridden my bike through practically all of them, and though I can’t quite put my finger on it, these hills & canyons have secrets. I’m not just talking about the roque marijuanna field either.

For instance, up Sierra Highway there is the disgraced Tony Alamo cult property. Up San Fransciquito, well, it’s supposedly haunted with the dead of the St. Francis dam disaster. I once saw a shirtless, bearded man smoking pot and listening to the Grateful Dead in a cabin up in Bouquet Canyon, and I’ve already documented some of the strange and wonderful things I found in Tapia Canyon, near the jail. Soledad Canyon is home to abandoned fire trucks, youth work camps, and the kind of people attracted to KOA campgrounds. We’ve all been back to spooky Mentryville, while in Towsley, oil bubbles up from the earth. Drive or ride over Vasquez Canyon and you’ll be treated to topography and rocks wholly different from the rest of the SCV.

In other words, you go into Santa Clarita’s canyons, and you never know what you’ll find. Good on the Deputies for making this career-enhancing bust!