Truck reported stolen from SLO dealership recovered in Morro Bay and driver arrested in connection

MORRO BAY, Calif. – A 65-year-old man was arrested Sunday for possession of a stolen vehicle after the personal check he used to purchase a truck was declined for insufficient funds and he refused to return the vehicle.

On Jan. 19, around 10:45 a.m., police in Morro Bay received a stolen vehicle alert from one of the ten Automated License Plate Readers within the city limits stated a press release from the Morro Bay Police Department Tuesday.

Officers responded to the area and located the vehicle, a 2024 Ford F250, in the 700 block of Harbor Street with a 2025 Harley Davidson motorcycle in the bed shared the Morro Bay Police Department.

After an investigation into the incident, it was found that the driver, a 65-year-old man, had purchased the truck from a Perry Ford dealership in San Luis Obispo on Jan. 9 with a personal check, but when the dealership attempted to cash the check, it was declined as the account had insufficient funds detailed the Morro Bay Police Department.

On Jan. 15, the man arrived at the same dealership to purchase another vehicle and was successfully able to submit another personal check for the second vehicle and a woman who came with the man left in the second vehicle on the same day explained the Morro Bay Police Department.

According to Morro Bay Police, when the man attempted to leave the dealership in the F250, dealership employees from the first purchase stopped the man and demanded another form of payment or that he leave the vehicle.

The 65-year-old declined, drove over landscaping, and fled the area stated the Morro Bay Police Department.

Perry Ford dealership then reported the truck as stolen explained the Morro Bay Police Department.

Sometime on or around Jan. 17, the same man used a personal check to purchase a motorcycle from a Harvey Davidson dealership in Fresno shared the Morro Bay Police Department.

According to Morro Bay Police, the personal checks used to purchase both the second vehicle as well as the motorcycle also were declined for insufficient funds and the motorcycle was reported stolen to the Fresno Police Department.

The woman who had left the dealership in the second vehicle was contacted by Perry Ford and returned the vehicle added the Morro Bay Police Department.

The 65-year-old driver was arrested and booked into the San Luis Obispo Jail on possession of a stolen vehicle and both the San Luis Obispo Police and Fresno Police departments were contacted about the arrested detailed the Morro Bay Police Department.

Anyone with more information is asked to contact Sergeant Nicole Taylor at 805-772-6233.

Morro Bay's Chief of Police Amy Watkins shared that the Automated License Plate Reader that alerted her agency about the stolen vehicle has proven to be an invaluable tool for law enforcement in the area.

Chief Watkins noted that the system does not use an artificial intelligence nor does it upload collected information outside of Morro Bay's jurisdiction and instead checks images against federal lists of stolen vehicles.

Individual officers can make requests about specific vehicles which requires additional training and certification and a log in code unique to each officer for oversight purposes added Chief Watkins.

The system, installed in January of 2023 to thwart several thefts of catalytic converters at the time, has already been used to successfully stop criminals who can take advantage of small town jurisdictions, locate vehicles involved in hit-and-runs, as well as find missing people explained Chief Watkins.

According to Chief Watkins, the cameras only take images of the vehicle and license plate, which includes paper dealer plates, like in this case.

The ten cameras are strategically placed within the city limits and are in use in other nearby jurisdictions including Grover Beach, Paso Robles, and Santa Maria added Chief Watkins.