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Burglary victim helps deputies arrest suspects
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RIPON – A Ripon man watched as his property on South Jack Tone Road was being burglarized.

As soon as the suspects loaded the stolen items in their get-away vehicle, they headed toward Manteca with the victim close on the heels of the unsuspecting burglary quartet. At the same time, the victim called the Sheriff’s Office to report what was happening.

At Ideal Parkway and Venture Drive in Manteca, the victim stopped the suspects. The waiting deputies took over the investigation and immediately made contact with the subjects. Inside the vehicle, they found four people. The victim then identified to the deputies his truck wheels that he saw taken out of his property earlier by the suspects. The four truck aluminum alloy wheels found inside the suspect’s vehicle were valued at $900.

Arrested and booked in San Joaquin County Jail were Thomas Macias, 42; Evangelina Manuelta, 28; Luis Alberto Aviles, 21; and, Angelique Jocelyn Owens, 18.

Suspects Owens, Aviles and Cuevas were arrested with each facing three counts of burglary and grand theft charges.

Macias is being charged with the same three counts of burglary and grand theft felony charges. He had initially identified himself to the arresting deputies by a different name. However, his lie was discovered when a Stockton Police Pact Team officer revealed his true name to the Sheriff’s deputies for which he is facing two additional charges for willfully obstructing, interfering, and delaying police investigation.

According to reports from the Sheriff’s office, the story began on Dec. 23 shortly around 11 a.m. when the victim was driving his tractor by his residence on a 60-acre almond orchard ranch and saw a “dark-colored small vehicle with at least two subjects parked next to his residence.” Then he saw one of the subjects, who was wearing a white T-shirt, get out of the vehicle and walk into the open barn. The victim told the deputies that he was about 700 feet away when he saw the four suspected burglars.

As he watched, the victim next saw the male suspect with the white T-shirt load up the four truck aluminum alloy wheels into the suspects’ vehicle. The wheels were stacked in front of the victim’s residence.