Three Northern California men arrested in snowboard thefts at Tahoe ski resort, sheriff says

Three Nevada County men were arrested on grand theft charges stemming from snowboard thefts after a violent confrontation between theft victims and the suspects at a Tahoe ski resort, sheriff’s officials said.

The reported assault occurred Monday at the Boreal Mountain Ski Resort in Soda Springs, the Nevada County Sheriff’s Office announced in a news release.

Two snowboarders had placed their two snowboards in rack holders just outside the ticket area for about 15 minutes. The snowboarders returned and discovered one of the snowboards was missing.

Sheriff’s officials said the snowboarders searched the area and found the missing snowboard in the bed of a truck in the parking lot, where they encountered the three suspects: a 25-year-old man and 23-year-old man, both from Grass Valley; and a 38-year-old Nevada City man.

When they confronted the suspects, the 25-year-old man assaulted one of the snowboarders before leaving the area with the two other suspects, according to the Sheriff’s Office.

The snowboarders had already retrieved the stolen snowboard. Sheriff’s officials said the snowboarders called 911 and gave deputies a detailed description of the suspects, the truck and its license plate number.

The truck was registered to the 23-year-old man, who is known to be affiliated with the other Grass Valley man who was on probation, according to the Sheriff’s office. The Nevada City man also was on probation.

Deputies coordinated with Nevada County Probation Department officers, who found the three suspects at one of their homes in Grass Valley. Sheriff’s officials said investigators found and recovered four allegedly stolen snowboards.

The three suspects were arrested on suspicion of grand theft and criminal conspiracy and booked at the Nevada County Jail.

Sheriff’s officials said investigators later learned of two additional snowboard theft victims on Monday at Boreal Ski Resort, and their snowboards were found in the parking lot adjacent to where the suspects’ truck had been parked.

Equipment theft is an ongoing occurrence across Sierra Nevada ski resorts, according to the Sheriff’s Office.

“When possible, the Sheriff’s Office recommends that skiers and snowboarders never leave their equipment or belongings unattended, even for a few minutes,” sheriff’s officials said in the news release. “If equipment must be left, the Sheriff’s Office recommends utilizing combination locks to decrease the likelihood of theft.”

Investigators asked any other snowboard theft victims to call the sheriff’s property unit at 530-265-1350 with a detailed description of the stolen snowboard to determine whether it’s been recovered.