A 53-year-old Railroad Flat man was arrested by Ripon P:olice officers shortly before noon Saturday allowing them to recover some $5,000 in merchandise from three Tractor Supply stores in San Joaquin and Stanislaus counties.

Shawn Michael Tegen was booked into the San Joaquin County Jail on multiple felony charges including burglary, theft utilizing a forged credit card, fraud and the possession of stolen property, according to Ripon’s First Sergeant Steve Merchant.

Merchant said a quick 911 call from employees at the Ripon store on Jack Tone Road near Highway 99 combined with the determination of the responding officers to stop the suspect from preying on local business were keys to the investigation.

As officers Mario Ysit and Ken Husman arrived on the scene about 11 a.m. management pointed out a subject who had made purchases totaling almost $2,000 at the Ripon location.  The suspect was in the process of loading the merchandise onto his vehicle when the officers arrived onto the scene.

Tegen is being held in lieu of $115,150 bail in the San Joaquin County Jail in French Camp.  His court date is set for Tuesday, June 4, at 1:30 p.m. at the Manteca Branch of the San Joaquin County Superior Court.