Semi driver suspected of stealing 150 gallons of fuel arrested in Southern Utah

A semitractor driver accused of stealing more than 150 gallons of fuel was arrested in Beaver County over the weekend.

On Thursday afternoon, deputies were dispatched to a tow yard in Beaver City on a report of a fuel theft, after a driver of a dump truck arrived at his truck to find the fuel tank completely empty, according to charging documents filed in support of the arrest.

The incident reportedly occurred north of the tow yard, where a semi truck and a dump truck had been parked in the lot the previous evening with full tanks of fuel.

The semi was missing “one whole tank of fuel,” while the dump truck was left completely empty, the deputy noted in the report.

In total, approximately 150 gallons of diesel fuel, totalling nearly $600, had been siphoned from the two vehicles.

Security camera footage was turned over to police, which showed a lime green semitractor-trailer pull into the lot shortly after 11 p.m.

The semi had several distinctive features, including double-stack exhaust pipes and orange marker lights along the trailer and on top of the cab. Deputies noted a rectangular window that was darkly tinted near the sleeper portion of the cab, which was also missing a front bumper.

The semi was seen backing into the lot just south of the semi truck that reportedly had missing fuel the following morning.

Deputies sent out a broadcast to all surrounding agencies to be on the lookout for the semi in question.

On Saturday, a Utah Highway Patrol trooper spotted a semi that matched the suspected truck heading south on Interstate 15 near mile marker 128, just north of Beaver City.

The driver pulled off the interstate at Exit 120 and then proceeded east to a gravel pit, where he was then pulled over, and Beaver County Sheriff's deputies were called for backup.

While troopers were waiting for deputies to arrive, the semi driver got out and walked around the exterior of the lime-green cab and trailer
Upon arrival, deputies identified the driver as 36-year-old Marquan Lavese Conerly Warren, of California. He reportedly told deputies he was the only one who drove the truck and said he had not been in Beaver City “recently."

Deputies noticed the trailer’s rear doors ajar, and upon closer inspection, they discovered that the vehicle identification number on the trailer had been scratched off and was illegible.

A background check revealed that Warren had an extensive criminal history out of California, with multiple arrests and convictions for thefts, possession of a stolen vehicle and robbery, according to the report.

Additionally, Warren's commercial driver’s license, issued out of California, was found to be two years past its expiration date. Warren had no active log book, nor was he able to provide any load information as required.

During a search of the cab, deputies say they found a six-pack of beer, with two beers missing, as well as an electric fuel pump with a hose attached and a set of jumper cables.

“It should be noted that the pump, the hose, and the jumper cables were all coated in fuel,” the deputy noted in the report.

Deputies then recovered a second fuel hose from a compartment underneath the sleeper in the cab, along with two electronic “Norpass devices,” which are used to bypass weigh stations and ports of entry without stopping.

Warren declined to answer any further questions.

He was arrested and booked into the Beaver County Jail on multiple charges, including fuel theft, unlawful transportation of alcohol, a commercial license violation, failure to have a log book, driving without insurance, driving without a commercial driver’s license endorsement or with a restriction.

He also faces three infractions for having no bumper, mud flaps or a visible license plate on the truck.

The case was forwarded to the Beaver County Attorney's Office for review, and the driver has yet to be formally charged. He remains in jail in Beaver County with bail.