Morro Bay police arrest suspect in stolen vehicle case
Vehicle was reported stolen by a dealership in San Luis Obispo after payment for the truck was returned for insufficient funds
– Officers with the Morro Bay Police Department arrested a suspect on Jan. 19 following an alert from the city’s Automated License Plate Reader system regarding a reported stolen vehicle.
At approximately 10:45 a.m., the system flagged a 2024 Ford F250 as it entered the city limits. Officers located the vehicle on the 700 block of Harbor Street, where they also found a 2025 Harley Davidson motorcycle in the truck’s bed.
Police identified the suspect as Thomas Oliver Hight, 65, and initiated an investigation. Officers learned the vehicle was reported stolen by a dealership in San Luis Obispo after payment for the truck was returned for insufficient funds.
According to the investigation, the dealership had attempted to recover the truck after the payment issue. When Hight returned to the dealership to purchase another vehicle, staff confronted him and demanded payment for the truck or its return. Hight refused, fled the dealership in the vehicle, and caused landscaping damage as an employee tried to block his exit.
Hight was arrested and booked into the San Luis Obispo County Jail on vehicle theft charges. The San Luis Obispo and Fresno police departments were notified of the arrest and advised of related cases involving the Ford and Harley Davidson dealerships.
The Morro Bay Police Department asks anyone with information about the incident to contact Sergeant Nicole Taylor at (805) 772-6233 or San Luis Obispo County Crime Stoppers at (805) 549-STOP.
The investigation remains ongoing.
