The suspicions of Sgt. Vince Hooper regarding an absence of license plates on an older Honda led to the Sunday evening arrest of a Keyes driver for felony auto theft and possession of stolen property.

At 10:53 p.m. Hooper was on patrol at Hatch and Mitchell roads when he observed a white Honda CRV with a missing front license plate and a Mistlin Honda paper plate attached to back. The vehicle turned into the south entry of Walmart near the automotive area where Sgt. Hooper conducted a traffic stop. He ran a check of the vehicle identification number (VIN) and was advised by dispatch the vehicle was a reported stolen vehicle in Newman on June 19.

Sergeant Hooper arrested driver Burris Fisher, 31, of Keyes, who claimed that he borrowed it from his girlfriend who supposedly handed over three keys to start it. He said at no time had he suspected the vehicle was stolen. But the three keys Fisher had did not work in the doors or the ignition. Hooper saw the paper plate on the rear was covering the front license plate assigned to the vehicle. The rear license plate with the month/year tabs was not found.

Fisher was booked into the Public Safety Center for felony auto theft and possession of stolen property. He also had several warrants for his arrest for drug possession and possession of drug paraphernalia.