Three Seattle men were arrested Wednesday night in a string of burglaries from Bend to La Pine, Bend Police said.
The suspects are identified by Bend Police as Johnny Lardizabal Marza, 36, Mark Joseph Sampayan, 31, and Fortunato R. Novelo, 55.
The alleged crime spree started Aug. 14 after a break-in at the U-Haul along Highway 97 in north Bend.
Police say the store’s manager reported someone used a rock to break the glass door, enter the shop and steal vehicle keys. The burglar tried, but failed, to get into a cash drawer. But two trucks were stolen from the store.
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One of those stolen trucks was found the next day by a Deschutes County Sheriff’s deputy near Sunriver.
Then on Tuesday, officers responded to a burglary at Oxarc, Inc., on Robal Lane, right around the corner from the U-Haul. Bend Police say the suspects showed up in a U-Haul truck, shot out the front door with a firearm and stole four welding units.
Then at 2:35 a.m. on Wednesday, Bend Police assisted DCSO on a burglary report at the Camp Abbot Trading Post & Ace Hardware in Sunriver. According to Bend PD, a caller reported that the suspects were driving a U-Haul pickup truck. The U-Haul was recovered, unoccupied, at Sunriver Village.
Also on Wednesday, employees at the Deschutes County Solid Waste Transfer Station in La Pine reported the building had been broken into and property had been stolen.
Bend Police said the investigation determined that a white Jeep with a black top was associated with the burglaries. A Deschutes County Sheriff’s deputy saw the Jeep in the area of Base Camp Grill in Sunriver and contacted its occupants.
The Jeep’s owner was contacted, Bend Police said, adding that she was out of state and not connected to the burglaries. Police said they learned the occupants were likely living at the owner’s property on Lazy River Drive in the Three Rivers Area.
A search warrant was conducted on the property and the Jeep Wednesday night. Bend Police said officers recovered all of the stolen property in the incidents listed above. Four guns and a large amount of ammunition was also recovered.
The suspects were taken to the Deschutes County Jail on the following charges, according to Bend PD.
- Arrested: Johnny Lardizabal Marza, 36-year-old Seattle resident
- Charges: Burglary II, Criminal Mischief I, Unauthorized Use of a Motor Vehicle, Criminal Conspiracy, Unlawful Use of a Weapon
- Arrested: Mark Joseph Sampayan, 31-year-old Seattle resident
- Charges: Criminal Mischief I x2, Burglary II x2, Unauthorized Use of a Motor Vehicle x3, Theft I, Felon in Possession of a Firearm, Unlawful Use of a Weapon, Criminal Conspiracy x2
- Arrested: Fortunato R. Novelo, 55-year-old Seattle resident
- Charges: Unlawful Possession of a Firearm
