Man arrested in theft of 3 Humvees, other equipment from military facility in Orange County, California

Hannah Fry, Los Angeles Times on Jan 30, 2025

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LOS ANGELES — A 40-year-old man suspected of stealing a cache of military equipment — including three Humvees — in a late-night break-in at the Army Reserve Center in Tustin has been arrested, police said this week.

On Jan. 8, sometime between 8 and 11:30 p.m., at least one individual entered a storage warehouse at the reserve center on Red Hill Avenue, ransacked storage lockers and cut a fence to access a military vehicle parking lot, according to the Tustin Police Department.

Three Humvees, a type of all-terrain vehicle used in military activities to transport passengers and cargo, were taken. Eight machine gun vehicle mounts, seven freestanding machine gun tripods, medical equipment, 40 pairs of binoculars and 18 bayonets also went missing from the facility, police said.

Three days after the theft, police said they recovered two of the Humvees — one in Santa Ana and the other in Orange. But the third vehicle and the rest of the gear remained unaccounted for until Jan. 16, when authorities said they recovered the third Humvee and other missing equipment while serving search warrants in Orange.

Authorities at that time also arrested a suspect, identified as Alfredo Reyes Jr.

It is not clear what prompted police to suspect Reyes. Authorities declined to provide additional details about the case Thursday.

Several Humvees have been taken from military sites across the county, including in California, in recent years.

In 2020, a Pomona man allegedly went to an Army Reserve Center in Upland, drove off with a Humvee worth more than $200,000 and briefly led police on a chase.

A Humvee stolen in January 2021 from a National Guard Armory in Bell was recovered five days later.

Another of the vehicles was taken from Naval Base Coronado in San Diego County in 2022 and later found behind a Home Depot in Imperial Beach.