Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office press release:

On July 14, 2018, at about 12:22 a.m., a Humboldt County Sheriff’s deputy on patrol in the Blue Lake area observed a vehicle, reported stolen out of Eureka on July 10, traveling west on Highway 299.

Donald Lee Bardwell Jr. | HCSO.

The deputy then observed the vehicle merge onto Highway 101 southbound. As the vehicle approached the City of Arcata, the deputy requested the assistance of the California Highway Patrol and the Arcata Police Department. The deputy conducted a felony traffic stop on the vehicle near the 2200 block of Baldwin Street in Arcata.

The driver, 39-year-old Donald Lee Bardwell Jr., was arrested without incident. A passenger of the vehicle was released at the scene.

Bardwell Jr. was booked into the Humboldt County Correctional Facility on charges of vehicle theft, possession of stolen property and driving without a license.

Anyone with information about this case or related criminal activity is encouraged to call the Sheriff’s Office at (707) 445-7251 or the Sheriff’s Office Crime Tip line at (707) 268-2539.