Hemet victim run down by his own stolen truck, woman arrested in Lake Elsinore

Deputies have arrested a woman who allegedly rammed into a man while driving his stolen vehicle Thursday, April 6. The incident happened after the victim used a phone app to track his stolen truck to a rural residence in the 20000 block of Little Valley Road in the community of Good Hope. The truck had been stolen from the City of Hemet the previous evening.

The owner of the truck, who was not identified, sustained minor injuries and he was later provided first-aid and treated by AMR medics.

After an investigation, sheriff’s deputies arrested Sabrina Lynn Redfern, 28-years old, from Lake Elsinore.

She was booked into the Southwest Detention Center in Murrieta on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, vehicle theft, causing harm to an elder, possession of methamphetamine and possession of narcotic paraphernalia. She was also booked for violation of probation.

The victim told investigating deputies the incident began when he tracked his stolen vehicle to the Little Valley Road residence.

As the victim approached the area while trying to locate his vehicle, described as a gray Dodge Ram pickup truck, he spotted his truck being driven by a woman. The driver was later identified as Redfern.

As his stolen truck approached him the victim walked towards the vehicle, at which time Redfern accelerated the truck directly at him, striking him with the front bumper of the truck.

The impact knocked the victim to the ground and Redfern fled the area in the truck.

Despite suffering minor injuries from being run into, the victim continued to track his stolen truck. He eventually tracked the vehicle to a shopping center in the 29000 block of Central Avenue in Lake Elsinore.

At about 8 a.m., the victim called 911 and notified authorities what had already happened and he provided them with the truck’s current location.

Deputies from the Riverside County Sheriff’s Lake Elsinore Police Station responded to the shopping center and spotted the stolen vehicle being driven through the center’s parking lot.

Deputies conducted a traffic enforcement stop in the area of Dexter and Central Avenues. Redfern pulled over and was detained without incident.

At the conclusion of their investigation, deputies arrested Redfern.

An online jail records search revealed Redfern is being held on $50,000 bail and is scheduled to be arraigned at the Southwest Justice Center in Murrieta April 10.

Anyone with information about this incident or who witnessed the victim being struck during the initial confrontation is encouraged to contact Deputy Vanessa Rodriguez-Melendez of the Lake Elsinore Police Department at (951) 245-3300, or after hours at (951) 776-1099. Callers can refer to incident file number L170960029 and can remain anonymous. Citizens may also submit a tip using the Sheriff’s CrimeTips online form.

 

Contact the writer: [email protected]

Trevor Montgomery runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes for Riverside County based newspapers, Valley News and Anza Valley Outlook and also writes for Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County.

Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg and breaking his back in an off-duty accident.

During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations, including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center and Lake Elsinore Station, along with other locations.