Landscaper arrested for looting after allegedly stealing an electric bicycle from mountain fire victim

CAMARILLO, Calif. (KABC) — A landscaper was arrested Saturday in Camarillo after allegedly stealing an electric bicycle from a man whose property was damaged in the Mountain Fire.

The incident happened on Friday when the victim was using the bicycle to inspect the damage to his property.

According to the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office, he parked his bicycle in his driveway and walked through his front yard. Then he noticed that his neighbor’s landscaping crew was nearby.

“When he returned to where he had parked his bicycle, he discovered that it had been taken,” the sheriff’s office said in a news release. “Due to the timing and proximity of the theft, he confronted the landscapers, who were at his neighbor’s home, and one of them admitted to taking the bicycle.”

The suspect, identified as Ramon Avila Pacheco, eventually returned the bicycle.

The victim reported the theft the next day as officers patrolled the area amid an evacuation order.

Officers arrested Pacheco near Temple Avenue and Aloha Street on suspicion of looting in an evacuation area. He was admitted to prison for pre-trial detention.

The incident is still under investigation.