Stolen longboards spotted for sale online; Bend PD undercover sting leads to arrest, recovery
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) – A Bend woman who learned from a neighbor that her children’s stolen longboard skateboards were up for sale online led to a Bend Police sting operation and the arrest of a 32-year-old Bend man, officers said Friday.
Police reached out around 8 a.m. Thursday to the woman who learned the two stolen longboards, valued at about $90 apiece, were for sale on Facebook Marketplace, police spokeswoman Sheila Miller said.
The woman had filed a police report online regarding the May 2 theft, which she had captured on her Ring camera, Miller said.
After an initial investigation, officers contacted the online sellers of the longboards, offering to buy them for $120. The suspect agreed to the sale and to meet in a store parking lot on Robal Lane, Miller said.
An undercover officer texted the suspect to arrange the sale, then approached the suspect, who put the longboards against a vehicle’s bumper. Once the officer identified them as the stolen items, other officers approached and arrested the man on suspicion of second-degree theft.
The longboards were returned to the victims.
Bend Police encourages the public to access its online reporting system to report crimes, including criminal mischief and vandalism, lost property, non-injury motor vehicle accidents and non-injury hit-and-run motor vehicle accidents, thefts and unauthorized entry into a vehicle. You can access the online reporting system at www.bendpolicereports.com.
