A man was behind bars Friday, along with an alleged accomplice, on suspicion of using sticky glue rat traps tied to a dog leash to steal mail from a mailbox in Santa Ana.
A city parking control officer spotted a man putting a cord into the U.S. postal mailbox near Main Street and Washington Avenue about noon Thursday, said Santa Ana police Cpl. Anthony Bertagna. After fishing out several pieces of mail, the man ran to a pickup truck with a woman behind the wheel and they drove off, Bertagna said.
He said the officer trailed the vehicle and relayed its movements to police officers, who stopped the truck and arrested the suspects, identified as Santa Ana residents Jose Manuel Jimenez, 39, and Renee Marie Paredes, 49.
“Fortunately, we had two patrol cars less than a block away” when the parking control officer called, Bertagna said.
Jimenez was booked at the Santa Ana Jail on suspicion of possession of phishing tools — the leash and glue-board mouse traps, which were bought at a 99-cent store about a block away — and possession of stolen U.S. mail, with bail set at $20,000, Bertagna said.
Paredes allegedly provided false information about her identity, but further investigation revealed she had outstanding warrants and her bail was set at $430,000, police said.