2 Held as Tip Leads to Cache of Allegedly Stolen Equipment

An anonymous call to police about a shotgun lying on the floor of a car led to the discovery Sunday of a cache of allegedly stolen electronic equipment and drug paraphernalia.

Officers spotted the car in the parking lot of the Howard Johnson motel in Reseda. By tracing the license plate, they determined that the car had been reported stolen, according to Sgt. Rick Mastro of the West Valley Division.

From hotel officials, the officers learned that the car had been parked in the lot by two men registered as guests.

The officers went to the room, where they found 19 cellular phones, two laptop computers and stereo amplifiers, plus chemicals that can be used in making the drug methamphetamine, Mastro said. The officers also confiscated a “cookbook” on how to make methamphetamine.

Robert Arnold, 22, and Steve Pollock, 23, both of Chatsworth, were arrested at the hotel about 1:30 p.m., Mastro said.

The men were held on $20,000 bail after being booked on suspicion of grand theft auto. Mastro said the charges will probably increase as officers investigate how the items in the room came into the men’s possession.

“It might be a ring or these guys might be doing capers themselves,” Mastro said. “It’s a great arrest and a good example of good, old-fashioned police work. They took a shotgun and turned it into a good arrest.”