Portland police have arrested a man in an auto theft investigation that started in October when a pair of Vancouver residents unknowingly purchased a stolen car.
Lucas Dean Weisensee, 22, is accused of stealing a 2005 Scion in Northeast Portland and placing the car on Craigslist for sale, according to the Portland Police Bureau. Two Vancouver residents responded to the ad and met with the seller at the Jantzen Beach Shopping Center, paying $5,800 for the key and title to the vehicle, police said.
When the couple went to register the vehicle, they learned the title was fraudulent and the car had been reported stolen earlier the same day, police said.
One of the purchasers had taken a photo of the suspect at the time of sale, which police say ultimately led to his identification as Weisensee. After police released the photo, anonymous tips were sent to the Crime Stoppers of Oregon, and Weisensee was arrested on Wednesday.
He faces charges of computer crime, first-degree forgery, identity theft, first-degree possession of a forged instrument, possession of a stolen motor vehicle, first-degree theft, trafficking a stolen vehicle and unlawful use of a motor vehicle.
