Man Who Stole $10K Worth of Checks From Fiesta Foods Busted
Because he was wearing the same clothes as a thief seen in surveillance video, a Dalles, OR man is behind bars after a traffic stop.
Oregon officials say 27-year-old Daniel Lee Wood III has been arrested and charged with stealing "tens of thousands" of dollars from Fiesta Foods in Hermiston. The investigation began August 4th when store officials reported a bag containing recently cashed payroll checks was taken from the store.
Officials two days later interviewed several people during the investigation, including Wood. He and relatives claimed he'd never been anywhere near the store that day. But then police say his story fell apart. The same day of the theft, in the evening, Wood was pulled over on Highway 97 by an Oregon State Patrol trooper on a charge of driving on a suspended license.
It turns out, Wood was wearing the same clothes as the suspect seen in the Fiesta Foods video. Armed with probably cause, authorities found in his home evidence that he had been stealing over $10K worth of third-party checks from the store. Police have not yet found the August 4th theft bag. They think he threw it away because it didn't contain any cash, just cashed checks.
Wood is also facing charges from Wesco County for providing alcohol and pot to a minor, and for a car crash and fight May 26th, according to the East Oregonian.