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By Leslie Griffy - The Tribune Posted on Tue, May. 31, 2005 SAN LUIS OBISPO - Step out of jail and steal a truck. That is just what Zarate Chavez did Friday night after finding a bail bondsman's truck with the keys in it in the County Jail parking lot, the California Highway Patrol said. "I've seen a lot of stolen cars," said CHP Officer Robert McLean, "but this is the first time I've seen a bail bondsman get his stolen." Bail bonding agents take out bonds for the families of people in jail, often secured by homes or car titles. The money is used to get the person out. The bond is cleared once the defendant makes a court appearance, and 10 percent of the money goes to the bonding agent. Chavez was released Friday at midnight on his own recognizance -- meaning police trusted him to make his court date without making him post bond -- after spending a night in jail on suspicion of having a controlled substance, sheriff's deputy Sgt. Tony Perry said. Three men who were released at the same time as Chavez watched him pick through the cars until he came across the white truck, according to bondsman Steve Erden. Erden's habit is to throw his heavy key ring under the seat. After Chavez got to Erden's truck, officials say, he drove off with his find. "I don't think any of the bail bondsman around will help this guy get out this time," McLean said. Erden said he left his car -- as he had hundreds of times before -- in the jail parking lot. "When I came out (from posting a bond for another man) the other guys saw me looking a little confused and they said 'Hey, you looking for a white pickup? Somebody just drove off in it,' " Erden said. "What, did they think this guy had driven to jail?" With the help of those witnesses, Erden filed a police report. Highway Patrol officers based in Santa Maria reported the location of the truck Sunday. It was near Nipomo, said McLean, the officer who arrested Chavez. "The truck is fine," Erden reported. "But it was out of gas." Erden, who runs Steve's Bail Bonds with his wife, Barbara, said he's never had anything stolen in his 23 years on the job. But even though he believes it was a rare event, he did learn an important lesson. "I think I am going to keep my keys in my pocket," Erden said. McLean found the keys on the bathroom floor in the house where Chavez was arrested, he said. Chavez is back in County Jail. He'll be held there on charges of felony auto theft and possession of a controlled substance until he can pay his $10,000 bond or a judge lets him out.
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