A 19-year-old man suspected of stealing about $42,000 worth of gasoline from a station near National City was taken into custody Monday.
Andrew Gerardo Escobedo was found on Monday at approximately 11:30 a.m. inside a GMC Yukon while filling it with gas at the Chevron station in the 1900 block of Sweetwater Road in Lincoln Acres, according to the San Diego County Sheriff's Department.
Escobedo was arrested and booked into the San Diego Central Jail on suspicion of grand theft.
Deputies from the Imperial Beach Sheriff's Substation initially responded to reports of a grand theft at the station Tuesday.
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Employees informed investigators that Escobedo had been visiting the station at least twice a week since June, stealing an estimated $2,000 worth of gasoline each time.
Sheriff's officials reported that gas station staff had been working with Chevron's information technology department to tackle ongoing fuel thefts, continuously tracking fuel consumption that did not align with the daily sales figures.
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After further investigation, deputies discovered that Escobedo had manipulated the gas pumps by using a credit card, tricking the fuel system into thinking the pump was in use, even though the transactions were never completed.
During the arrest, deputies discovered several large plastic containers inside the Yukon, some of which contained gasoline.
Sheriff's officials estimated that Escobedo may have stolen about $42,000 worth of gasoline.
The investigation into the thefts continued on Monday evening.
