Alert Petaluma Resident Helps Police Catch Antioch Man Suspected In Vehicle Theft

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PETALUMA (CBS SF) - An Antioch man was arrested Saturday afternoon in Petaluma on suspicion of vehicle theft, police said.

Whitney Dase, 52, was taken into custody after a resident called about 4 p.m. to report that a man parked a car in the 1600 block of Baywood Drive and then walked away, checking door handles on other vehicles, police said.

The resident provided a license plate number, which revealed the car had been stolen out of San Rafael earlier in the day.

When the suspect started to drive away in the car he had arrived in, officers pulled him over. A record check revealed Dase was on felony probation out of Contra Costa County.

He was arrested without incident on suspicion of vehicle theft, possession of a stolen vehicle, and vehicle theft with prior convictions. Dase was booked into the Sonoma County Jail, and the undamaged vehicle was returned to its owner.