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Thieves steal $50K in tires, wheels from Tuff Boy
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A Tuff Boy employee surveys an empty trailer where some $50,000 worth of truck tires and wheels were stolen in the predawn hours Monday morning. - photo by GLENN KAHL

Thieves made off with some $50,000 worth of new General truck tires already mounted on wheels sometime before dawn Monday from a storage yard at West Yosemite Avenue and the Highway 120 Bypass.

Sales Manager for the Tuff Boy Trailer organization Bryce Perkins said that the facility’s north fence on Guthmiller Road was found broken and left standing in place when one of the employees did a walk around at about 8 a.m.

The thieves were believed to have made a number of trips through the 30-foot-wide gate they had rammed and pulled down with a chain. Each of the tires and wheels weighed over 200 pounds and were taken from a truck trailer that had been used for their storage.

It is believed there had to be four to six men involved in taking the tires because of their size and weight.

A Tuff Boy employee said Monday evening that the gate had been welded shut and two industrial trailers were parked in front of the gate. However there was enough room for a vehicle to slip by the side of one of the trailer units, he said.

In past years the trailer yard has been hit with thieves using a fork lift to disengage the wide chain link gate.

Perkins noted that Tuff Boy has been hit with aluminum and copper wire thefts in recent past.

“To steal a dramatic load of tires – this is something new,” Perkins said

The tires are branded with the Tuff Boy logo making them easily recognizable, Perkins said. The brand “tB 12” is located near the bead of each tire.

Manteca Crime Stoppers is offering a reward of up to $1,000 for any information leading to the arrest of those responsibles and the return of the wheels and tires. A caller may remain anonymous by calling 823-4636.