Burglary Suspect Arrested In Menifee After Vehicle, Music Instruments Found

LAKE ELSINORE, CA — A Lake Elsinore man was in custody Sunday on suspicion of vehicle theft and possession of stolen property, the Riverside County Sheriff's Department announced.

Deputies responded to an open-door call for service around 9 p.m. Thursday in the 43000 block of Mandarin Drive in Valle Vista, an unincorporated area near Hemet. They found the residence unsecured and ransacked but were unable to locate the owner or any suspects, authorities said.

The sheriff's Hemet Special Enforcement Team was familiar with the residence, assumed the investigation and was able to locate the homeowner and determined a burglary had occurred. The owner reported that multiple items were missing from the residence, including musical instruments and a grey Ford F150.

Deputies from the sheriff's Perris station located the stolen vehicle Friday in the 25000 block of Sundance Lane in Menifee. A vehicle stop was conducted and the driver was identified as 51-year-old Tony Goff.

Deputies also conducted a vehicle search and allegedly found several thousand dollars of stolen musical instruments. Goff was taken into custody and the music equipment and vehicle were returned to the owner.

Goff was subsequently booked into the Cois Byrd Detention Center where he was being held on $25,000 bail. He is scheduled to appear in court Wednesday at the Southwest Justice Center in Murrieta.

Anyone with additional information about the case was encouraged to contact Deputy Roberto Valentin at 951-791-3400.

— City News Service