An auto thief was arrested with the help of a license plate reader camera, in Costa Mesa

Last night, police officers located a stolen vehicle thanks to an innovative tool, a license plate reader camera, which alerted their department of the stolen vehicle in the area, according to the Costa Mesa Police Department.

The Huntington Beach Police helicopter, HB1, was overhead and located the vehicle pulling into a parking lot. Some nearby residents might have heard the helicopter at around 8:30 p.m.

One of the Costa Mesa police officers arrived and located the vehicle parked in a stall. Two occupants that were in the vehicle were detained.

It turns out the passenger, in the photos, was on probation and had several warrants including a no-bail probation warrant. He was also in possession of drug paraphernalia.

This story ends well: the victim recovered their vehicle at the scene. The suspects headed off to jail.