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Searching for theft victims Mail Tribune / Bob Pennell Medford police Detective Bill Ford looks through some recently recovered stolen property, including electronics, tools and other equipment taken mostly from property along Crater Lake Highway, according to the man police say admitted stealing the stuff. Now that they've found the alleged thief, police are looking for the owners of the unclaimed property that he left behind. By SARAH LEMON Police said they have found the thief. Now they're looking for the victims. Recovered property totaling $2,500 in value has a temporary home in the Medford Police Department's warehouse. But police are hoping the owners will claim the stolen stuff soon. A variety of tools, machinery, electronics and a bicycle remain unclaimed after police returned $20,000 worth of property earlier this month following a theft suspect's July arrest. A Central Point man was charged July 26 with stealing property in the Rogue Valley and Yreka, Calif., over a three-month period. Joshua Michael Traugott, 24, confessed to the crimes and told police he took most things from construction sites, the backs of pickup trucks and unlocked cars, said Medford police Detective Bill Ford. Traugott targeted the Crater Lake Highway area in particular, and also disguised items, such as an 8-foot utility trailer he repainted and refurbished with different wood siding and then sold, Ford said. Traugott allegedly moved stolen loot between Oregon and California, often selling it well outside the area where it was stolen, police said. Firearms reported stolen in Central Point were recovered in Yreka and snowmobiles taken from the Northern California community were found in Medford, Ford said. Yreka police on July 26 arrested Traugott on numerous felony charges after discovering him asleep in a truck reported stolen out of Rogue River. The truck was towing a car carrier trailer reported stolen from a Crater Lake Avenue business, police said. And the trailer contained stolen items. Medford Police Department cited Traugott on multiple counts of aggravated theft, first-degree theft, attempted first-degree theft, unauthorized use of a vehicle and criminal mischief, according to police reports. Charges will be forwarded to the Jackson County District Attorney's office, Ford said. Traugott was also charged with burglary and criminal trespass. He is now lodged in Siskiyou County Jail and faces possible prison sentences in Oregon and California. A large amount of property that Traugott confessed to stealing was discovered in a Cabbage Lane residence in Phoenix, according to police reports. Many items were identified and returned to their rightful owners, but some remain in police possession. Unclaimed high-dollar items include a wood lathe, nail gun, engine hoist and stand, video camera and binoculars. Police are still trying to find a black BigTex open-box utility trailer with an estimated value of $7,000. Traugott admitted to stealing the trailer but told police that he left it in a parking lot. But police said they believe he sold it to someone who was unaware that it was stolen. The recovered items may have been reported stolen, Ford said, but police haven't been able to make positive matches in their computer system because the items may not have been described accurately enough. Some theft victims may have avoided reporting the crime because they thought they wouldn't get their stuff back, he said. Anyone hoping to reclaim the stolen items can go to Medford Police Department's criminal investigation division in Room 288 of Medford City Hall. Photos of property recovered in this case are available for viewing. Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.