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Lakeport Police logs: Saturday, Jan. 10
Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026
00:00 EXTRA PATROL 2601100001
Occurred at Lake County Law Library on 3D....
Police seek leads on gas thefts; officers discover pickup with siphoning system
LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lakeport Police Department is searching for information on unreported gasoline thefts after the discovery this week of a vehicle that appeared to be rigged specifically for such crimes, and which also contained tools commonly used for burglary.
Lakeport Police Chief Brad Rasmussen said that this past Thursday at 1:45 a.m., Lakeport Police officers observed a suspicious white 1995 Chevrolet Cheyenne three-quarter ton shop/utility bed pickup truck with a black lumber rack parked in the area of Lakeshore Boulevard and Giselman Street.
He said the officers continued to patrol and conduct surveillance in the area throughout the morning in an effort to detect possible criminal activity, with an officer entering the truck at 5 a.m. after noticing an operating propane heater was burning a hole in the seat.
At that time, the officer noticed numerous items that he recognized to be commonly possessed by persons who commit burglary and gasoline theft, including flashlights, gloves, pry bar, utility knife, police band scanner, locking and nonlocking gasoline caps, and a suction hose and reel, according to Rasmussen.
Due to the suspected evidence of a crime in the vehicle, officers decided to tow and store the vehicle pending completion of an affidavit for search warrant. Rasmussen said the officers also believed the vehicle may be associated with recent burglaries.
During the towing inventory of the vehicle contents additional suspected burglary tools were observed, Rasmussen said, including bolt cutters and a gasoline siphon system.
Additional officers and detectives responded and a search warrant affidavit was completed and authorized by a superior court judge, he said.
At approximately 1:45 p.m. Thursday, Lakeport Police officers and detectives served the search warrant on the vehicle, documenting and seizing items of evidence including a lock pick, punch, bolt cutters, pry bar, metal cutting tools, vehicle gasoline caps, gloves and a fuel siphon system, Rasmussen said.
He said the fuel siphon system was an elaborate 12 volt pump set up, hard wired to the vehicle DC power, concealed in a utility compartment and plumed to the vehicle fuel tank with a long siphon hose.
The system also had a third connection believed to be set up to offload fuel from the tank or divert it to a separate fuel container. Rasmussen said it appeared that the siphon system was built for the sole purpose of stealing fuel from vehicles and that it had the capability of siphoning many gallons of fuel in a matter of minutes.
The investigation is ongoing and officers are seeking to determine if there are unreported gasoline thefts or other burglaries in the Lakeport area, he said.
Based on the numerous vehicle gasoline caps recovered, Rasmussen said there may be persons who had caps and fuel stolen but did not report it to law enforcement.
Additionally, he said police are aware that sometimes gasoline theft victims do not file crime reports with law enforcement.
The last known gasoline theft report filed with the Lakeport Police Department was on Jan. 1, where a victim had their vehicle fuel tank completely emptied of approximately 10 gallons of fuel, Rasmussen said.
Rasmussen asked that anyone who may have information related to recent vehicle fuel cap and gasoline thefts or other recent burglaries, or people who saw the truck in the area where these the crimes may have been committed, contact police to assist them with this investigation.
The Lakeport Police Department can be reached at 707-263-5491.
Any pictures or identifying information – such as license plate numbers or suspect descriptions – also may be directly sent to Chief Rasmussen at
UPDATE: Capitola Police officers arrest man wanted for Lakeport burglaries
This story has been updated with additional details about Stokes' arrest.
LAKEPORT, Calif. – An Upper Lake man sought since last week for his alleged involvement in a series of Lakeport burglaries has been arrested in Santa Cruz County.
Jeffery William Stokes, 25, was arrested on Friday in Capitola, according to Lakeport Police Chief Brad Rasmussen.
Rasmussen said Capitola Police notified his agency at 11:30 a.m. Friday that they had a lead on Stokes' whereabouts and they wanted to confirm the Lake County arrest warrant that had been issued for him.
“They got a call from a relative that reported he showed up at their house, and they advised him to leave and they called the police,” said Rasmussen.
He said Capitola Police also had received a tip that Stokes was at a shopping mall.
Capitola Police officers then went looking for Stokes and located him, at which point he gave them false names. However, Rasmussen said police were able to positively identify Stokes.
Rasmussen said his agency received word at 2 p.m. that Stokes had been arrested and booked into the Santa Cruz County Jail.
The Lakeport Police Department had put out another call to the community on Thursday seeking leads as to Stokes' whereabouts.
Rasmussen said they had received numerous leads as to where he may have been but hadn't been successful in finding him.
An arrest warrant was issued for Stokes this week, with the Lake County District Attorney's Office charging him with 19 separate counts for the downtown break-ins, Rasmussen said.
He's facing eight counts of felony burglary, five counts of felony possession of stolen property, four counts of misdemeanor theft, and one count each of misdemeanor possession of burglary tools and vandalism, according to the Lakeport Police Department.
Stokes' alleged accomplice in the burglaries, 46-year-old Kimberly Jo Harvey of Nice, was arrested on Jan. 9 at the Anchorage Inn in Lakeport after police found her – along with items of stolen property and burglary tools – in a motel room registered to Stokes, as Lake County News has reported.
Harvey, who has an extensive criminal history with multiple convictions for crimes including theft, forgery and burglary, remains in the Lake County Jail, with bail set at $200,000, according to jail records.
Arrangements for Stokes to be transported back to Lake County are pending the status of any local charges in Santa Cruz County, Rasmussen said.
Stokes is being held on the $200,000 Lake County warrant of arrest, with Rasmussen adding that he also was charged with providing false information to Capitola Police.
Rasmussen thanked the numerous members of the public who provided information about where Stokes may have been hiding out.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
Male subject accused of peeping, annoying girl sought by police
LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lakeport Police Department is investigating a case in which a man attempted to take pictures or video of a girl in a changing room at Kmart last weekend.
The incident occurred on the afternoon of Sunday, Jan. 12, according to Lakeport Police Chief Brad Rasmussen.
He said officers were dispatched to Kmart to investigate the report of an adult male subject taking video or photos of a 15-year-old female while she was trying on clothing in the girls' changing room.
The victim reported that she saw the cellular phone camera pointed down at her from over the top of the changing room door and also saw the suspect’s boots from under the door, Rasmussen said.
Police worked with Kmart loss prevention agents to obtain video of the suspect while he was inside the store, according to Rasmussen.
The suspect is described by police as a white male adult or possibly a Hispanic male with a light complexion.
He was wearing a black-hooded jacket with a gray lining in the hood and white or gray lettering across the chest, blue denim carpenter pants and a black beanie cap that may have a short ball cap type bill, Rasmussen said.
Rasmussen said the suspect appeared to have a dark-colored beard, was approximately 5 feet 7 to 5 feet 9 inches tall, weighed 190 to 200 pounds, and walked with slightly out-turned toes.
Based on the suspect's movements in the video and information obtained during the investigation, Rasmussen said police believe the suspect entered the store for the specific purpose of targeting the dressing room.
Police are seeking the public’s assistance in identifying the suspect. Anyone with information is asked to contact Lakeport Police at 707-263-5491.
Police seek leads in early morning burglary, attempted burglary in downtown Lakeport
LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lakeport Police Department is seeking the community's help in identifying the subjects responsible for a burglary and an attempted burglary that took place in the city early Thursday morning.
Lakeport Police Chief Brad Rasmussen said offers were dispatched to Park Place Restaurant on Third Street shortly after 9:30 a.m. Thursday to investigate the report of a burglary.
He said the officers determined that someone forced entry into the business and searched it for items of property to steal.
Officers recovered items of evidence that are being processed in an effort to identify who may have been responsible for the break-in, Rasmussen said.
Based on the investigation, Rasmussen said police believe that the Park Place burglary occurred early Thursday, possibly between 5:30 a.m. and 6:30 a.m.
Several hours later, at 11:15 a.m., officers were dispatched to the office of Dr. Katherine Andre in the 70 block of Fourth Street to investigate the report of an attempted burglary, Rasmussen said.
Rasmussen said there was an attempt to force entry into the building, but it was unsuccessful.
Officers believe the burglary and attempted burglary are connected and the investigation is ongoing, Rasmussen said.
He added that, at this time, there is no information to indicate that these incidents are related to the series of burglaries that occurred in the city last week.
Anyone who may have seen suspicious persons or activity in these areas during the early morning on Thursday is asked to contact the Lakeport Police Department, telephone 707-263-5491.