Local News in Brief : Burbank Seizes 3 in $200,000 Tool Thefts

Burbank police said Friday that they arrested three men and recovered $200,000 in power tools and assorted plumbing and electrical equipment taken from pickup trucks stolen from Burbank parking lots and later abandoned.

Gary Hendrickson, 34, of Los Angeles and James Tomlinson, 33, of Eagle Rock were arrested on suspicion of auto theft Monday in a police stakeout of a parking lot where trucks had been reported stolen, Sgt. Don Goldberg said.

Melvin Qualls, 53, of Eagle Rock, was arrested a day later on suspicion of receiving stolen property after the investigation led to his Eagle Rock home, where the stolen tools were found, Goldberg said.

Six pickup trucks previously reported stolen since the middle of December were found within a five-mile radius of the home, Goldberg said.

Hendrickson was being held without bail in Los Angeles County Jail on a previous felony narcotics warrant, police said. Tomlinson and Qualls each were released on $5,000 bond.

Police will display the stolen equipment Feb. 7 and Feb. 21 in a police lot at 154 W. Providencia Ave., Goldberg said. People wishing to claim property must first present an itemized list of equipment they are missing, he said.