Fingerprints on a Red Bull can left in a stolen semi truck recovered by police led to the arrest of the thief more than a year later.
The theft of the Freightliner tractor and Wabash trailer was reported on June 12th, 2024 in the 8500 block of San Gabriel Drive in Laredo, Texas.
According to Laredo Morning Times, the owner of the tractor trailer initially noticed that the truck was stolen and tracked the rig to the 8800 block of Killam Industrial Boulevard using a GPS installed on the truck. The owner found the truck abandoned and called police. Officers then used video from the truck yard to determine that two men had taken the tractor trailer around midnight.
During the investigation of the abandoned rig, Forensic Identification Services discovered a discarded Red Bull can in the cab. Investigators then lifted fingerprints off of the discarded can, and used them to identify a suspect – 28-year-old Gerardo Velasquez.
Velasquez was served an arrest warrant on October 23rd, 2025 for a felony theft charge. He was booked into the Webb County Jail on October 26th, 2025. He was later released on a $40,000 bond.
