LOS ANGELES, CA — A man caught on surveillance video during early-morning burglaries at two food trucks in the Oxnard area remains unidentified, and the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office is asking the public for help finding him.
The burglaries happened around 4:40 a.m. on Sept. 5 near the 2500 block of Cortez Street, in the unincorporated El Rio area of Ventura County, according to the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies investigating the incidents determined that two generators were stolen from one food truck business and that a second nearby food truck was also entered, with cash taken from inside.
No arrest has been announced in connection with the burglaries.
Two food trucks were targeted
The businesses affected were La Chaparrita taqueria and Miklo’s burgers and tacos, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
Investigators said deputies first learned that two generators had been stolen from a local food truck business. During the investigation, deputies determined that another nearby truck had also been burglarized and that cash had been taken.
The two incidents occurred in the same general area and during the early-morning hours.
Surveillance footage captured the suspect during one of the break-ins, giving investigators an image they hope will help identify him.
The Sheriff’s Office has not publicly identified a motive or said whether the same person may have been involved in other burglaries.
Suspect described by investigators
Authorities said the man seen in the surveillance footage was wearing several distinctive pieces of clothing.
The suspect was described as wearing:
- A New York Mets baseball cap
- A black and gray surgical mask
- A black T-shirt
- A white undershirt
- Blue jeans
- Sneakers
Investigators are asking anyone who recognizes the man, or anyone who may have additional surveillance footage from the area around the time of the burglaries, to contact the Sheriff’s Office.
The department regularly works with residents and businesses that have security-camera systems. Its Video Surveillance Camera Registration program says privately operated cameras can provide investigators with information that may help identify suspects and solve crimes.
Early-morning burglary captured on video
The timing of the incidents is one of the details investigators are using to reconstruct what happened.
The burglaries occurred at approximately 4:40 a.m., when the food trucks were closed and there were fewer people around the businesses.
The surveillance footage provides investigators with visual evidence of the person they believe entered the businesses, but the suspect has not yet been identified.
Authorities have not said whether the stolen generators or cash have been recovered.
They also have not announced whether there were additional witnesses to the incidents.
Food trucks targeted in unincorporated El Rio
The location is in an unincorporated portion of Ventura County near Oxnard.
The County of Ventura notes that the Sheriff’s Department provides law-enforcement services in the county’s unincorporated communities, while Oxnard has its own municipal police department.
That distinction is relevant because the reported burglaries occurred outside the incorporated city limits in the El Rio area.
The Sheriff’s Office has investigated other commercial burglaries in unincorporated areas of Ventura County, including cases involving businesses targeted during nighttime or early-morning hours. In a separate 2026 case, detectives investigated a series of nighttime burglaries involving Freightliner trucks in the El Rio area.
That earlier case is unrelated to the food-truck burglaries described here.
Security footage could help identify the suspect
Investigators are specifically asking for additional camera footage, which could provide another view of the suspect or show what happened before or after the break-ins.
The Sheriff’s Office says surveillance systems operated by businesses and residents can be particularly useful when investigators are trying to establish a suspect’s movements.
The department encourages property owners to register their surveillance cameras so investigators know where potentially useful footage may exist when crimes occur nearby.
That does not give deputies automatic access to private camera systems. Instead, the program helps law enforcement identify locations where footage may be available and allows investigators to contact camera owners when relevant.
No suspect has been arrested
For now, the man shown in the surveillance footage remains at large.
The Sheriff’s Office has not announced an arrest, and no charges have been filed against an identified suspect in connection with the Sept. 5 burglaries based on the information currently available.
The stolen property also has not been publicly reported as recovered.
Investigators are relying on the surveillance footage and information from the public to move the case forward.
Anyone who recognizes the suspect or has additional security-camera footage from the area around the 2500 block of Cortez Street around 4:40 a.m. Sept. 5 is being asked to contact the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office.
As the investigation continues, authorities are asking residents and business owners who may have relevant footage not to overlook recordings that could show the suspect arriving, leaving or moving through the area.
