Police concluded a three-month investigation into a local chop
shop with the arrest of a man who was storing stolen auto parts at
various locations around Gilroy.
Police concluded a three-month investigation into a local chop shop with the arrest of a man who was storing stolen auto parts at various locations around Gilroy.
Abel Marquez, 42, was arrested at 7922 Westwood Drive, his residence, for possession of stolen property and probation violation. About 7:30 a.m. Wednesday, the Gilroy Police Department’s Anti-Crime Team, the Santa Clara County Regional Auto Theft Task Force and the California Department of Justice executed a search warrant on one of the locations Marquez was storing stolen auto parts.
Marquez had been using a shop on Kern Avenue to store stolen parts, police said. They also searched his Westwood Drive home, another parcel of land in Gilroy and a property in the county. Police found a stolen vehicle on one of the properties but have not yet charged Marquez on that matter, police said.
Police made three additional arrests during the operation on warrants for unrelated offenses.
“We figured we would find other folks there,” Sgt. Joseph Deras said.
The names of the additional three arrests were not immediately available.
Marquez was already on active probation before his Wednesday arrest. Deras would not say why he was on probation.
Police are still searching for “a couple” of Marquez’s associates. They would not, however, release their names.
“We strongly encourage residents to be vigilant in their efforts to minimize the possibility of becoming a crime victim,” Deras wrote in a press release. “Oftentimes we see an increase in auto thefts during the colder periods of the year. Motorists will often warm up their vehicles in the morning prior to leaving for the day. This provides an opportunity for thieves to take their vehicles quickly. We recognize this trend and have taken steps … to aggressively pursue the criminals responsible.”
