Lake Mathews Tool Theft Suspect Released On Bond: Sheriff

SAN JACINTO, CA — A 21-year-old man suspected of stealing thousands of dollars' worth of tools and other gear from his former employer near Lake Mathews was released from custody Monday on a $5,000 bond.

Alex Ruben Caballero of San Jacinto was arrested and booked into the Smith Correctional Facility in Banning on Thursday on suspicion of embezzlement. Caballero posted bail Sunday and was released, according to jail records.

"In the last week of July, a business owner, whose identity was not released, alleged the suspect had hauled away $8,200 in tools and other work equipment from a site in the 17000 block of Multiview Drive, near Gavilan Road, in the unincorporated community of Gavilan Hills, roughly a mile southeast of Lake Mathews," the Riverside County Sheriff's Department Sgt. Matthew Bolle said.

Following an investigation, detectives gathered sufficient evidence to obtain an arrest warrant, which was served on Caballero after he was stopped in his vehicle on Thursday in Winchester, according to the sheriff's Sgt. Matthew Bolle.

The suspect was taken into custody without incident.

"Through investigative leads, deputies located the stolen property at a residence in the 1300 block of Sunswept Drive in San Jacinto," Bolle said.

The type of business where the alleged theft occurred was not disclosed.

Background information on Caballero was also unavailable.