Police have weeks of waiting to determine if evidence collected
from a stolen Gilroy car links an alleged car thief to a recent
arson.
Police have weeks of waiting to determine if evidence collected from a stolen Gilroy car links an alleged car thief to a recent arson.
Joseph Jacob Uvalles, 21, of San Jose, was driving a silver Ford F150 pickup truck in Amador County when sheriff’s deputies arrested him Oct. 17 for a number of crimes. Deputies found burglary tools and evidence that could connect Uvalles to an Enterprise car rental burglary earlier that morning in Martell – about 40 miles northeast of Stockton. Gilroy police also collected evidence of a possible connection to an Oct. 16 burglary and arson of Budget Rent A Car from the car and submitted it to the Santa Clara County crime lab, which takes an average of 39 days to return results.
“We’re just going to wait for that to come back,” Gilroy police Sgt. Jim Gillio said.
Gilroy’s Budget agency was broken into the morning before Uvalles was arrested, and a television, PlayStation 2 and four computers appeared to be missing, the agency owner and police said. The burglary was discovered when firefighters responded about 4:30 a.m. to what appeared to be a deliberate fire, police said.
Uvalles, in the stolen pickup, and a driver in a sedan were both parked at the Amador Ridge Shopping Center in Martell about 4:30 a.m. When a sheriff’s deputy approached them in a car, the two drivers sped away.
The deputy pursued the vehicles, ran the license plate of the pickup and found it reported stolen from Budget Rent A Car. As the two vehicles went in different directions, the deputy followed the truck as it headed west.
After more than 30 miles Uvalles lost control, careened off the road, rolled twice and ended up sideways in an open field east of the town of Wallace – about 25 miles northeast of Stockton.
In the vehicle, deputies found burglary tools and stolen property associated with a burglary at a Martell Enterprise agency.
Deputies arrested Uvalles, who was uninjured, on suspicion of auto theft, possession of stolen property, evading a peace officer and being an unlicensed driver. He is being held on $35,000 bail.
Anyone with information regarding these incidents can contact Sgt. Noel Provost at 846-0331 or leave an anonymous tip at 846-0330.
