Luis Canales
Rolando Garza
Frio County deputies were able to recover a stolen sedan within hours of two thieves driving it off a property in the northwest corner of the county on Tuesday, February 28.
According to a report on the case, deputies were dispatched to a residence on FM 117 near Dilley shortly after 11 a.m. after the owner realized the 2014 Toyota Camry was missing.
“We immediately broadcast the vehicle’s description and license plate number through our telecommunication system,” Frio County Chief Deputy Peter Salinas said.
Within 15 minutes, deputies spotted the stolen vehicle at a gas station near the intersection of IH 35 and FM 140. The occupants, later identified as 25-year-old Luis Canales and 33-year-old Rolando Garza, drove the sedan northbound on IH 35 before turning east on FM 173 in Devine.
It was when deputies attempted to effect a traffic stop that the driver led law enforcement on a high-speed pursuit. Garza and Canales drove the sedan through several properties before deputies found the car abandoned in the brush on FM 2504 in Atascosa County.
Garza and Canales were found hiding in the thick brush and were subsequently arrested on felony charges for unauthorized use of a motor vehicle and evading arrest or capture with a motor vehicle.
Both men were transported to the Frio County Jail without further incident and were bonded out.
“We want to thank state troopers, deputies from the Atascosa and McMullen county sheriffs’ offices and the 81st Judicial District Attorney’s office,” the chief deputy said. “It really is a team effort to deter crime in South Texas.”
