At about 8:57pm Sunday, Turlock Police Officer Marquez put himself on an area check at Countryside Drive and Fulkerth Road.

A U-Haul that had been reported stolen to Livingston Police the prior week had just been detected by license plate readers heading northbound from the intersection. Marquez confirmed with dispatch that the U-Haul was still in the stolen vehicle system.

Afterward, numerous officers flooded the area and began searching for the U-Haul. Eventually, the U-Haul was located in a parking stall in front of Walmart.

Officers briefly surveilled the U-Haul until a man walked over to it. Officers converged on the stolen U-Haul and detained the man without incident. He was identified as Randall Robertson, 60, of Livingston.

During the investigation, it was determined Robertson had rented the U-Haul, but failed to return it after the rental agreement had expired. Robertson was also found to be in possession of narcotics.

Robertson was arrested and booked into the Stanislaus County Public Safety Center on charges of failing to return a rented vehicle, receiving a stolen vehicle, possession of a controlled substance, and possession of drug paraphernalia.

The company could not retrieve the U-Haul and it had to be towed away from the scene with Robertson’s belongings still in it. Robertson will have to return to the rental location after being released from custody to pick up his property.