Modesto man allegedly steals vehicle, hides in train car before surrendering to police in Barstow
A man who authorities said stole a vehicle and eluded law enforcement for about an hour before barricading himself inside a locomotive car was arrested in Barstow earlier this week.
Kristopher Gonzalez, 32, of Modesto, was booked into county jail on suspicion of vehicle theft after the Thursday incident. Barstow police identified Gonzalez as the suspect and officers began searching for him after receiving a call shortly after 10:30 a.m.
The California Highway Patrol had previously reported a wrong-way driver in a red Volkswagen Jetta traveling northbound in the southbound lanes of Interstate 15. The vehicle was last seen exiting at Lenwood Road.
About 20 minutes later, a Barstow police officer spotted the Jetta at the Love’s Travel Stop off Lenwood Road where a man flagged the officer down.
The man told him the driver of Jetta had just stolen his vehicle, a tan Nissan Altima.
At the same time, the CHP broadcast over the radio that they had found the Altima on northbound I-15 at L Street.
Officials said a Black man in a gray shirt and black shorts had fled from the vehicle.
A couple minutes later, an employee from the Arctic Glacier Premium Store off Solar Way — which sits northwest of where the suspect fled — called police and said a man was attempting to steal one of the company’s service trucks.
When Barstow police and CHP officers showed up at the store, they were unable to find the man.
Then, about a half hour later, employees from the nearby BNSF Railway yard reported that a man had run inside one of their locomotives.
Officers set up a perimeter and could see a man “hiding inside the train car,” authorities said.
Gonzalez then stayed inside the “front portion” of the locomotive for about 10 minutes before surrendering to officers, according to officials.
Booking records show Gonzalez also has an outstanding, no-bail warrant for assault with a deadly weapon out of Los Angeles County.
He was being held in lieu of $50,000 bail as of Friday and is scheduled to appear in court Monday.
Daily Press reporter Martin Estacio may be reached at 760-955-5358 or MEstacio@VVDailyPress.com. Follow him on Twitter @DP_mestacio.
This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: Modesto man allegedly steals vehicle, hides in train car before surrendering to police in Barstow
