The FBI is asking the public for help to find a stolen Humvee on Friday morning from the California Army National Guard.
The vehicle is coupled to company A 40º Brigade Support Battalion, according to information released by the authorities. It was stolen from a National Guard Arsenal in Bell.
In addition to being painted with green camouflage, the vehicle had all types of official identification, including bumper number 40BSBHQ6, registration number NZ311R and sticker under the right headlight that says 40TH BSB.
“We went to the press as fast as we could, hoping someone would recognize him,” said Laura Eimiller, a spokeswoman for the FBI’s Los Angeles office.
As someone put it on Twitter: “Identifiers also include being a literal military vehicle driven by a guy who looks like he would steal a literal military vehicle.”
The Humvee’s remarkable features go beyond color. The vehicle is “armored”, as the military puts it, making it more resistant to attack.
It is considered a “combat vehicle”, said Eimiller.
The vehicle is worth $ 120,000 and there is a potential reward of $ 10,000 for its return. Stealing it carries a sentence of up to 10 years in prison.
Less than two weeks after far-right extremists attacked the United States Capitol, with rumors of other possible attacks circulating, the theft of such a vehicle is receiving attention on social media.
“Prob to be taken to the nearest capital to be used to mix. Kind of a bad time to let that happen, ”wrote a poster. Others commented similarly.
Eimiller said there was no evidence to indicate such a threat in relation to this theft “at the moment, but we are not ruling it out”.
It is also not uncommon for opportunists to steal a military vehicle or use bad judgment.
In November, a Pomona man reportedly went to an Army Reserve Center in Upland, left with a military Humvee worth more than $ 200,000, and briefly led the police in a chase through residential streets.
Police authorities are on high alert across the country.
On Friday night, Capitol Police arrested a man from Virginia who was found with weapons and ammunition after trying to enter an inauguration security checkpoint near the Capitol with an unauthorized credential, according to court documents.
This case appears, for the time being, to have been a false alarm – with the man genuinely confused about where he was – and with no apparent intention of causing harm.
But tensions remain high in the country’s capital and in cities across the country.
Anyone who sees the missing combat Humvee can call the FBI at (310) 477-6565.