Man Finds His Stolen Camera on Craigslist, Seeks to Recover It

A man who found his stolen camera listed for sale on Craigslist endeavored to recover it himself this weekend.

La Mesa Police say thieves stole the victim’s camera out of his car in San Diego on Friday.

Not long after, the man saw a listing for it online, contacted the suspects through Craigslist and planned to meet them at Grossmont Center at 2 a.m. Saturday.

However, about 20 minutes before the meet, the victim called La Mesa Police to tell them his plan.

Officers told him it was not safe to meet with the suspects alone and asked him to wait in the area for police to arrive. But other calls took priority, so officers could not meet with him right away, according to the LMPD.

The police department soon got another call from the victim, who told them he had met with the suspects in an effort to buy his camera back.

He claimed the suspects pulled a gun on him and then fled in a beige Ford Explorer.

The victim, who was not injured, decided to follow the suspects’ vehicle. With the help of El Cajon Police, officers tracked the vehicle as it turned from Johnson Avenue in El Cajon onto the Interstate 8 on-ramp.

Police pulled the vehicle over, searched inside and recovered the camera. However, they did not find a gun, and investigators discovered the victim’s allegation that the suspects held him at gunpoint was false.

Three suspects were taken into custody and booked into jail.

Jessica Hart, 31, already had two felony warrants out for her arrest, so police added charges of possession of stolen property and possession of burglary tools.

Joseph Kelly, 19, and Dominic Gress, 25, face the same charges.

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