Stolen car seen in Fresno, so officers followed it, caught thieves committing new crime

Three men were arrested Thursday night after the suspected stolen vehicle they were driving was followed by the HEAT task force, which witnessed the men drive to a home in Fresno and force their way in through a side door, where a woman and her children were inside at the time, said the CHP.

Jesus Roberto Lopez, 27, Victor Manuel Moreno, 25, and Jorge Manuel Iniguez, 24, all of Fresno, were being watched after the Help Eliminate Auto Theft Task Force spotted them in an allegedly stolen 2003 Ford Explorer in the area of Cedar and Clinton Avenues Thursday night. The SUV had been allegedly stolen at gunpoint earlier in the day in Kern County, the CHP said.

Officers on the task force called for air support and followed the men as they drove around northeast Fresno. They pulled into a parking lot behind a home on Austin Way. The three got out of the Explorer and jumped a concrete wall into the backyard of a home and entered through a side door.

Fresno police were called and the home was surrounded around 10 p.m. The woman resident was contacted, and she told police she and her children were inside the home.

A short standoff ensued, with Lopez, Moreno and Iniguez eventually surrendering and being arrested, said CHP.

This story was originally published December 23, 2016 at 7:45 PM with the headline "Stolen car seen in Fresno, so officers followed it, caught thieves committing new crime."