Sheriff’s Property Crimes Detectives arrested a Petaluma man on Tuesday after locating stolen racing wheels. The investigation began on February 23rd when a victim, who works for a racing company located at Sonoma Raceway, reported eight customized racing wheels, valued at about $6,000, stolen from his garage. The theft actually occurred in November or December, 2017 but he reported the crime to the Sheriff’s Office after spotting the wheels for sale on Craigslist.
Detectives contacted the Craigslist seller and made an appointment with him to purchase the wheels for $800.00. The Detectives contacted the seller in Novato and recovered four stolen tires. The seller said he was given the tires by the suspect, 49-year-old Jordan Slater of Petaluma, who also happens to be an a mechanic at another business on the Sonoma Raceway property. Slater gave the seller the tires in exchange for some discounted auto parts. The Craigslist seller didn’t know the wheels were stolen as Slater said they were just extra wheels from his garage that nobody was using. The Craigslist seller was not deemed to be a suspect in this crime.
Detectives served a search warrant at Slater’s home in the 900 block of Ely Blvd in Petaluma on Tuesday. Unfortunately they weren’t able to locate the victim’s four remaining stolen tires but they did arrest Slater and booked him into the Sonoma County Jail for grand theft charges. He has since been released on $5,000 bail.
If anyone knows the whereabouts of the four remaining wheels looking something like these, please contact Sheriff's Detectives at 707-565-2185.
Prepared by: Sgt. Spencer Crum
Media Inquiries: 707-565-3941
180223-018
