Deputies recovered six stolen catalytic converters and arrested two people for grand theft in Goleta, the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office announced Tuesday.
It all happened at around 3:40 a.m. on October 11 when deputies responded to the area of Dearborn Place and Armitos Avenue for a report of a catalytic converter theft that had just occurred.
Deputies were provided with a description of the suspect's vehicle and reportedly spotted it a few minutes later on southbound Highway 101.
Sheriff's officials say deputies conducted a traffic stop on the vehicle near the Las Positas offramp. They reportedly found the stolen catalytic converters in the vehicle along with a car jack and several electric saws.
Related: California tackling growing problem of catalytic converter thefts with two new laws
The two people in the car, Francisco Puente, 29, of Los Angeles and Francisco Javier Trujillo Gaona, 37, of Culver City were arrested on suspicion of grand theft, conspiracy, vehicle tampering, and possession of burglary tools. Puente was booked on additional charges of possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia.
