Phelan Man Arrested for Theft of Catepillar Skid Steer

PHELAN, Calif. – On Wednesday, March 29, 2017, Deputies Rob Oakleaf and Randy Stanley from the Sheriff’s Rural Crime Task Force recovered a stolen Caterpillar skid steer valued at $38,000.

The Rural Crime Task Force, who is assigned to the Victor Valley Station with a county wide responsibility, acts as a law enforcement liaison to the construction industry. Deputies Oakleaf and Stanley worked with Atkinson Construction Company to develop leads on the stolen skid steer. The skid steer was stolen March 18, 2017, from a job site on the 10 Freeway in West Covina. Deputies located the skid steer at a residence on the 13000 block of Nevada Rd. in Phelan and contacted Robert Vansurksum who claimed to be the owner of the skid steer. Although identifying information had been removed from the equipment, the Deputies were able to verify it was the stolen skid steer from Atkinson Construction.

Robert Vansurksum was booked at the High Desert Detention Center. He is currently out on bond.

Anyone with information regarding this crime is urged to contact Deputies Rob Oakleaf or Randy Stanley at the Victor Valley Sheriff’s Station, (760) 552-6801. Persons wishing to remain anonymous can report information to WeTip by calling 1-800-78-CRIME, or by accessing the website at www.wetip.com.

(Victor Valley Sheriff’s Station News Release)