(ROSEVILLE, CA.) — A driver who allegedly left the scene of a parking lot crash at a Roseville Walmart may have thought a day on the lake was a good way to put some distance between themselves and the investigation.
It wasn't.
According to the Roseville Police Department, patrol officers responded June 26 to the Walmart at 1400 Lead Hill Blvd. after a woman returned from shopping to find her parked vehicle had been hit hard enough to be shoved completely into the next parking stall.
Walmart surveillance footage quickly answered the question, "What happened?" The video showed a Ford F-250 towing a boat strike the parked vehicle. It also showed the driver get out, inspect the damage, apparently deciding that exchanging information could wait, and leave without providing the required information.
Investigators obtained the license plates for both the truck and the trailer. Their search eventually led them to Folsom Lake, where they found the suspect's truck and trailer waiting at the launch ramp.
The only problem?
The suspect had already launched the boat.
Fortunately for investigators, Folsom Lake is a lake, not the Pacific Ocean.
With assistance from California State Parks and the Placer County Sheriff's Office Marine Unit, Roseville officers climbed aboard a patrol boat, located the suspect on the water, and escorted the investigation back to shore.
Once on land, officers completed their investigation and submitted the case to the Placer County District Attorney's Office for review of a misdemeanor hit-and-run charge.
(The department's Facebook post quickly generated hundreds of reactions, with many commenters praising the persistence of the investigation and the cooperation between Roseville police, California State Parks and the Placer County Sheriff's Office Marine Unit.)
Several commenters on Facebook joked about officers having an unexpected afternoon on the lake. "Wonder who from RPD won the bet to get the boat ride that day," Michael T. wrote, while Kim Young-R. quipped, "Looks like an awful assignment—don't forget your sunblock."
Others focused on the investigative technology that may have helped track the suspect's movements. Several commenters speculated that automated license plate reader cameras, commonly known as Flock cameras, played a role, though Roseville police have not publicly detailed how the vehicle was tracked beyond stating that investigators obtained the truck's and trailer's license plates. Others questioned whether locating the suspect on the lake was necessary for a misdemeanor hit-and-run investigation. Many, however, said the case demonstrated the value of following through on crimes that might otherwise be considered minor.
The case serves as a useful reminder that while you can leave a parking lot, and you can launch a boat, neither automatically puts you out of investigative range.
It's not every day a Walmart parking lot fender-bender turns into a marine operation. Somewhere between Aisle 12 and Folsom Lake, the investigation picked up a nautical theme.
The suspect in this story is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. If you’d like to add or correct anything in this report, feel free to reach out to me or leave a comment below. Submit Roseville tips and story ideas to Sarah Denos at sarahkdenos@gmail.com.
Story image credit: Placer County Sheriff’s Office Marine Patrol webpage.
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