SAN JACINTO: Temecula carjacking suspect arrested after stealing second vehicle
Deputies converged on a residence after tracking a LoJack signal where they recovered a stolen motorcycle and apprehended a man who was not only charged with theft of the motorcycle, he was charged with an April 12 armed-carjacking. Will Whelan/Hemet Valley Incidents photo
SAN JACINTO – Officials from several different local law enforcement agencies worked together while tracking a carjacking suspect on a stolen motorcycle and ultimately taking the alleged suspect into custody.
Ryan Wilhite was arrested while in possession of a stolen motorcycle. He was also wanted in connection with an earlier carjacking. RSO booking photo
The man who was arrested, 28-year-old, Ryan Curtis Wilhite, of Murrieta, was wanted not only for stealing the LoJack-equipped motorcycle, he was also wanted for the armed-carjacking of a pickup truck from the city of Temecula Wednesday evening, April 12, Sergeant Steve Frederick explained in a written press release after Wilhite’s arrest.
Sheriff’s officials began searching for Wilhite after he allegedly carjacked a pickup truck from a victim who was sitting inside the truck, while parked in the driveway of his own residence.
In that incident, officials allege Wilhite confronted the owner of the truck, brandished a handgun at the victim and demanded the victim’s vehicle.
The victim, whose location was not disclosed for his protection, escaped from the vehicle without injury and Wilhite fled the area in the man’s truck.
“Detectives assumed the investigation, but neither the suspect nor the stolen vehicle were immediately located,” Fredericks explained.
Saturday’s incident began shortly after 2 p.m., when deputies from the department’s Temecula Police Station responded to the 42000 block of Orange Blossom Drive in Temecula regarding the report of a stolen motorcycle.
During their investigation, deputies learned the suspect, later identified as Wilhite, had taken the motorcycle on a “test drive” from the victim, who had listed the motorcycle for sale on the internet.
To set the victim’s mind at ease, during his “test drive” Wilhite left the pickup truck he had carjacked ten days earlier with the seller of the motorcycle as collateral. He was last seen as he left the area on the victim’s motorcycle.
Deputies converged at the location where the motorcycle theft and carjack suspect was apprehended. Eddie George/Hemet News photo
“When the suspect never returned with the motorcycle, the victim notified police,” Frederick said.
When deputies learned Wilhite had driven to the victim’s residence in the truck, they conducted a records check on the vehicle, at which time they learned the truck was the one that had been carjacked on April 12.
When deputies compared the description provided by both the original and second victims they determined both descriptions were the same. After Wilhite was later apprehended, deputies learned he matched the descriptions provided by both victims.
Several hours later, shortly after 7 p.m., officials with LoJack-equipped patrol vehicles began to pick up the LoJack signal and started tracking the stolen motorcycle as it moved through the San Jacinto Valley.
Over the course of the thirty minutes, several agencies, including California Highway Patrol, Hemet Police Department and Riverside County Sheriff’s Department spent time tracking the moving motorcycle, first into and through the city of Hemet and later into the city of San Jacinto.
Although ground units temporarily lost track of the LoJack signal, members of Riverside County Sheriff’s Aviation Unit in “Star-9” quickly re-acquired the signal while flying over San Jacinto. At that point deputies from the San Jacinto and nearby Hemet Sheriff’s Stations began to close in on the LoJack signal, which indicated the motorcycle was no longer moving.
Ryan Wilhite was arrested after deputies successfully tracked a LoJack-equipped motorcycle he allegedly stole. Eddie George/Hemet News photo
Deputies eventually tracked the signal and stolen motorcycle to a private residence in the 2000 block of Tall Grass Court in San Jacinto. At about 7:44 p.m., deputies moved in and recovered the stolen motorcycle and apprehended Wilhite at the location.
During their investigation, “Temecula Police detectives determined Wilhite was responsible for both the carjacking and the theft of the motorcycle,” Fredericks stated. “Wilhite was booked at the Southwest Detention Center for both crimes, and both vehicles were recovered and processed for evidence.”
An online jail records search revealed Wilhite remains in jail, held on $250,000 bail and is scheduled to be arraigned at the Southwest Justice Center in Murrieta April 26.
Anyone with information about either of these incidents is encouraged to contact Detective Jeff Fisher of the Temecula Police Department at (951) 696-3000. Callers can refer to incident file number TE171020234 and can remain anonymous. Citizens may also submit a tip using the Sheriff’s CrimeTips online form.
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Eddie George/Hemet News video
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.
Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.
Trevor has been married for more than 26 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and has 13 children and 12 – soon to be 13 – grandchildren.