An employee of Pramer Fuel in Norwalk called police in October to report that his take-home work van had been stolen overnight. The van contained $10,000 in tools and $8,000 in parts and other supplies, the company later told police. The van had a blue book value of $15,000, police said.
The van was found parked on a Bridgeport street later that same day. A window on the can had been broken, and all the equipment from inside was missing, according to police reports.
A scrap metal yard in Bridgeport later reported that three men had come to sell scrap metal in the same van that day, police said. One of the sellers gave the identification card of Jorge Orta-Perez, 59, of Bridgeport, according to the police report.
An arrest warrant was issued for Orta-Perez in November, police said. He was spotted by Bridgeport Police on Friday afternoon and turned over to Norwalk, according to police reports.
Orta-Perez said the other two men had picked him up while he was walking to the scrap yard and offered him $10 to use his identification, according to the arrest report. The case remained under investigation, and police are still looking for the other two suspects, police said Monday.
Orta-Perez was charged with second-degree larceny and conspiracy Friday. He was held on $10,000 bond, and is due in court on Feb. 18.
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