Granite Bay, Calif.- A citizen who called to report a suspicious man in their Granite Bay neighborhood early this morning was instrumental in stopping a series of burglaries in Granite Bay over the past week.
At 5:18 this morning, a Placer County Sheriff’s deputy responded to the citizen’s call and found Felipe Castro, 49, next to a vehicle near Auburn Folsom Road and Eden Roc Drive. Deputies spoke with him, but had no reason to detain him. Deputies continued to watch the vehicle, since they believed it may be related to the recent burglaries. A short time later, Joshua Michael Lowe, 31, got into the vehicle and drove away with Castro. Deputies pulled the vehicle over, and found Lowe, who was the vehicle’s registered owner, in possession of meth and stolen stereo equipment. As deputies were talking to Castro and Lowe, more burglarized vehicles were reported in that area.
Three different Granite Bay neighborhoods were hit by thieves over the past week. The first area was Joe Rodgers Road and Ebony Oaks Place. Then, seven cars and one garage were entered in the Walden Woods subdivision Sunday night and early Monday morning. Many of the vehicles were unlocked, and wallets, cash and credit cards were taken.
Lowe was booked at the Placer County Jail for possession of meth, transportation of meth, residential burglary, possession of stolen property and conspiracy. He is being held without bail due to a parole hold, as he was a parolee-at-large. Castro was booked for possession of stolen property and conspiracy.
The Sheriff’s Office would like to remind citizens to always lock their vehicles and to avoid leaving any possessions or valuables in their cars.