Yuba-Sutter Farm Bureau warns farmers, ranchers of increased equipment theft

Farmers across California's Yuba and Sutter counties are on alert as theft is on the rise.

Yuba City walnut grower Dan Johl is one of them.

"We just started taking a lot of precautions immediately," Johl said. "We now lock everything up. We put everything in sheds. We have cameras inside the sheds. We have multiple trail cams hidden in all of our orchards."

The Yuba-Sutter Farm Bureau put out a notice to farmers and ranchers, saying the Yuba County Sheriff's Office is investigating an uptick in theft of heavy equipment, like UTVs and other similar equipment, have been targeted.

Even then in these rural areas, farmers are taking matters into their own hands. For Johl, while it may not have been equipment, he has experienced heavy crop theft.

"They start to see the walnuts are falling," he explained. "They'll just pull over and they'll just start collecting a bunch. But in more recent years, they've been getting a lot more brazen."

Because of this new alert, Johl is taking extra measures, including installing a new fence and additional trail cameras, locking up all his equipment and even staying out later on his orchard to patrol.

This all comes at a cost.

"I had like two or three trail cams that I would kind of move around to different orchards as I needed. Now I'm going to be buying probably maybe six or seven more," he said. "They are anywhere from three to $500 each, depending on which brand you get."

Farmers run their equipment into the ground, so for one to lose an essential part of their livelihood is a major blow.

"It can be problematic," Johl shared. "Costs of new equipment has gone up over recent years. Definitely started around COVID and has only gone up since then so trying to buy something new to replace a stolen piece of equipment, it's gonna really impact a lot of farmers."

The Sutter County Sheriff's Office sent CBS Sacramento information advising farmers, especially now in the thick of harvest season, to "stay diligent. When possible, lock up equipment, secure valuable property, and put equipment away at night. A few extra precautions can make a big difference."

Yuba County Sheriff's Office also echoed the same message to be extra viligent about securing property and immediately report any suspicious activity. They say they are patrolling in full force and investigations are underway.