Police Dig Up Auto Parts
Car parts, possibly belonging to stolen cars and ranging from oil filters to pickup truck cabs, were found buried in the back yard of a Santee home Monday, California Highway Patrol officers said.
CHP officer John Marinez said the discovery was made by the Regional Auto Theft Task Force, acting on a tip that stolen cars might be buried in the yard of a house in the 8900 block of Magnolia Avenue.
Officers with a search warrant arrived at the home of George Malnar about 8 a.m. and found a pair of car doors that were traced to a stolen pickup truck. They also found the cab of a pickup truck and other car parts, Marinez said.
A metal detector showed that the yard was filled with metal. Officers used a tractor that had been reported stolen from Sun City contractor Karl Scanlan and was recently found near the Magnolia Avenue home to dig up dozens of car parts. They believe the tractor may have been used to bury the parts, Marinez said.
After digging only 2 feet, a car’s roof and a smashed Volkswagen emerged, Marinez said.
Marinez said it was not known whether Malnar was the owner of the home or a tenant. Malnar could not be found Monday morning.
The task force is headed by the CHP and is made up of members of the San Diego Sheriff’s Department and police from La Mesa and El Cajon.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
