Man Arrested, Woman Cited After Stolen Police Gear, Other Items Found In Rental Van In Mountain View
MOUNTAIN VIEW (CBS SF) -- A man was arrested in Mountain View after police found dozens of stolen items inside a rental van, including law enforcement gear from Bay Area agencies.
Mountain View police said in a press release the Nov. 1 arrests came after an officer on routine patrol outside a Kohl's department store on the 300 block of Showers Dr. noticed a U-Haul van parked near the entrance and thought it suspicious.
As the officer circled the Kohl's parking lot at the San Antonio Center shopping mall, police received reports from store employees who had spotted people known to have stolen from Kohl's stores before, police said.
Officers approached and called out to two men outside the store, one who stopped to talk to police while the second continued to walk away. The man who stopped was identified as 35-year-old San Francisco resident James Atkins, Jr.
Police said it was determined Atkins was driving the van and a search of turned up a number of stolen items, including duffle bags, handcuffs and other police department equipment. In addition, officers found stolen license plates and paperwork belonging to a state agency.
The agencies were not identified and further details of the stolen law enforcement gear were not revealed, but police spokeswoman Katie Nelson said no firearms were found.
Other items found included personal identifying information not belonging to Atkins along with drug paraphernalia, police said.
During the search of the van, other arriving officers began speaking with a woman sitting outside the Kohl's, police said. She was identified as 28-year-old Livermore resident Ashley Hund. A search of a bag Hund was carrying yielded items stolen from Kohl's and officers also learned she and Atkins were both staying at Hotel Avante on the 800 block of East El Camino Real in Mountain View, police said.
At their hotel room, officers found drug paraphernalia and suspected methamphetamine, police said. Atkins was arrested on suspicion of possession of stolen property and burglary, while Hurd was cited for petty theft and given a notice to appear in court.
