BUENA PARK : Suspect Is Arrested in Truck Hijackings

Police arrested a man suspected of hijacking five meat trucks at gunpoint from a supermarket warehouse since July, authorities said Thursday.

Rodney Duane Jefferson, 29, of Los Angeles approached wholesale meat supply trucks waiting in line between 4 and 6 a.m. to unload at the Lucky’s Market Warehouse in Buena Park, police said. Sometimes the trucks were parked in line with the drivers asleep in the cab camper.

“He would hijack the truck at gunpoint,” said Sgt. Patrick Thrasher, a Garden Grove officer attached to the Orange County Auto Theft Task Force. “Then he would tie the driver up, put him in the back of the cab and drive off.”

In Los Angeles, Thrasher said, “we believe he offloaded the meat to various businesses up there. Once the truck was unloaded, he would just dump the semi and the trailer and just walk away,” leaving the driver inside.

“We were lucky nobody was injured,” Thrasher said.

On one occasion, Jefferson and an accomplice both left a hijacked truck unattended and “the driver was able to untie himself and drive away,” Thrasher said. “In that case, they did not get the load.”

Thrasher said investigators have not yet determined whether the businesses that received the stolen meat were stores or restaurants.

The estimated value of the stolen meat was $500,000, and the vehicles taken were worth $480,000, he said.

While others may have been involved in the theft, “we believe Jefferson was the gun guy,” Thrasher said. “We don’t think he’s new at this. This is not something you just jump into.”

Jefferson was arrested on Tuesday and is being held without bail in Orange County Jail.

His arraignment is scheduled for Dec. 29. Kidnaping carries a maximum sentence of life in prison.