Police pursuit of stolen semi leaves truck owner struggling

Police pursuit of stolen semi leaves owner of the stolen rig devastated and out of work. 

The truck theft and pursuit happened on Wednesday, February 21st in Bakersfield, California. 

According to KTLA, truck driver Edward Guardado was driving his empty semi truck from Los Angeles back home to Bakersfield when he stopped at a gas station near 9500 South Union Avenue. Guardado went inside the restaurant at the location, leaving his empty truck unmanned. That’s when 25-year-old Roberto Rivera jumped into the cab of the truck and drove off with Guardado’s truck. 

“They saw that he had his back turned away and was not looking so they took advantage and just did it,” said Ruby Guardado, the trucker’s daughter. 

California Highway Patrol received reports of the stolen truck and quickly spotted it in Santa Clarita. Officers tried to pull the truck over but the thief refused, so a pursuit began. The hours-long pursuit continued for several hours through multiple counties before spike strips were deployed. 

The thief continued driving on the truck’s rims after the spike strips blew out the tires until the rims began to spark. Rivera eventually pulled over and the truck burst into flames. He quickly fled the scene on foot, but police were able to catch up to him and take him into custody. 

The truck became fully engulfed in flames, and traffic was stopped as firefighters worked to extinguish the blaze. 

Now, Guardado says he is already struggling to make ends meet with the loss of his semi truck. 

“I’m looking for another job,” Guardado said. “I’m very stressed.”

“I think he’s just in shock and disbelief,” Ruby said of her father. “He still can’t believe what happened. He doesn’t even know what he’s feeling because he can’t imagine it actually happening even though it did happen.”