Full Notification

Police witnessed an auto burglar break into a vehicle which led to his arrest shortly after. The suspect is connected to another auto burglary that occurred in December of 2018. He was taken into custody last Friday. On Friday, February 1, 2019 at 7:27 p.m., an officer on patrol recognized a suspect wanted for a previous auto burglary on foot in a parking garage in the 500 block of High Street. He watched the suspect use a flashlight to look into various vehicles. The officer witnessed the suspect smash a window and grab a purse and various personal items. The suspect then entered a 2003 silver Audi convertible and proceeded to drive out of the garage. Other officers who were called to the scene attempted to stop the vehicle, but the suspect willfully ignored their commands and fled at a high rate of speed. Law enforcement agencies in the surrounding area received a description of the suspect vehicle. At 8:55 p.m., Daly City Police located the vehicle with the suspect inside on East Market Street and Hillside Boulevard. The suspect, 18-year-old Luis Garcia of Daly City, was arrested and booked on two counts of auto burglary, committing a crime while out on bail (felonies), and unlicensed driver (misdemeanor). Police also booked Garcia for resisting arrest (misdemeanor) for ignoring commands to stop as he was fleeing after committing the burglary. Garcia is on probation for auto burglary out of San Mateo County. He was booked into the Santa Clara County Jail. His booking photo is attached to this news release (note: the booking photo has been removed pursuant to AB994 as of December 2023). The previous auto burglary Garcia was involved in occurred on December 17, 2018. In that case, a vehicle window was smashed in the 400 block of Bryant Street and personal items including electronics were stolen. Detectives are looking to see if Garcia is connected to other auto burglaries in the city. In an effort to deter thieves from stealing property out of your car, we encourage the public to never leave valuables behind or in plain view and to always lock your vehicle doors and roll up the windows. Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call our 24-hour dispatch center at 650-329-2413. Anonymous tips can be e-mailed to [email protected] or sent via text message or voice mail to 650-383-8984. Tips can also be submitted anonymously through our free mobile app, downloadable at www.bit.ly/PAPD-AppStore or www.bit.ly/PAPD-GooglePlay.