A man who allegedly stole thousands of dollars of gear from an FBI truck may not have realized the value of the equipment, as his charging documents say he sold a $1,500 ballistics vest from that haul for a $20 bag of meth.
The Bay Area News Group has a report today of a man charged with stealing thousands of dollars worth of equipment from an FBI van. The alleged theft happened at 6:45 am the morning of Wednesday, August 7, and per the News Group, suspect Gregory Acosta Alvarez is accused of stealing “dozens of flash bang grenades, a gas launching gun, surveillance equipment and a ballistics vest.”
Acosta Alvarez was reportedly arrested that same day, with most of the equipment being recovered at his nearby hotel room. But the ballistics vest and gas launching gun were not recovered.
That’s because, according to the News Group, “Acosta Alvarez allegedly claimed he traded them to someone for $20 worth of methamphetamine.” The ballistics vest alone is worth an estimated $1,500.
The alleged theft occurred August 7 in SoMa, at 442 Natoma Street between Fifth and Sixth streets. FBI Special Agent Welton Pollard had parked the vehicle there, and surveillance video reportedly caught Acosta Alvarez breaking into and stealing gear from the van, and riding away on his bicycle.
FBI agents were able to locate Acosta Alvarez’s hotel room, approximately a quarter-mile from the scene of the truck theft. They found a defibrillator that had been stolen from the truck (a defibrillator!), along with the grenades and some of the surveillance equipment. But the ballistic vest and the gas gun has already been hawked for some meth, allegedly.
Acosta Alvarez faces federal charges of stealing government property. Though he’s being held without bail at SF County Jail, on charges of burglary, drug possession, grand theft, and trespassing, with some of those charges relating to the FBI truck theft, and others from a previous 2023 arrest. His first court appearance has not been set.
Related: FBI Raids Notorious Bayview Towing Company, the One That Tried to Tow a Moving Car [SFist]
Image: PROVO, UTAH - AUGUST 9: FBI officials unloads the equipment as they process the home of Craig Robertson who was shot and killed by the FBI in a raid on his home this morning on August 9, 2023 in Provo, Utah. The FBI was investigating alleged threats by Robertson to President Biden who is visiting Salt Lake City today and tomorrow. (Photo by George Frey/Getty Images)
