The owner of a stolen car spotted the vehicle, hopped into it with some passengers and headed home on Thursday — and was nearly arrested for grand theft auto, a sheriff’s official said.
“The owner probably should have let LAPD know he had found the car before taking it back,” Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station Lt. Mark Hershey said.
The man was apprehended in a felony traffic stop Thursday when a sheriff’s deputy ran the plates on the car and they came up belonging to a stolen vehicle.
“The owner reported the car stolen to the Los Angeles Police Department last week, but he found the car and took it back,” Hershey said.
It was still listed as stolen in the county’s law enforcement data system.
Deputies blocked off the intersection of Golden Valley Road and Sierra Highway around noon to conduct the felony traffic stop, Hershey said.
Ultimately, no one was arrested and the situation was resolved, he added.
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