L.A. Duo Busted for Grand Theft of Freightliner Engine Control Units
By F. Scott Faulkner
Ventura County, CA — April 30th, 2026 — A string of targeted truck burglaries across Ventura County came to a halt April 29 when
investigators stopped a vehicle suspected as involved in thefts of high-value Freightliner engine control units.
According to Ventura County Sheriff’s Department spokesman Sgt. Ryan DeBlauw, the crimes
unfolded over several weeks in April in the El Rio area, where Freightliner trucks were
“repeatedly broken into during overnight hours” as suspects smashed windows to gain entry, and
then “removed critical components that allow the vehicles to operate.”
Detectives with the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office began tracking the pattern and soon linked
similar incidents reported by the Oxnard Police Department and the Simi Valley Police
Department. The coordinated investigation pointed to two Los Angeles residents as primary
suspects: Lenin Leyva, 46, and Ryann McMurtrey, 39.
Detectives spotted McMurtrey’s 2019 Jaguar driving through Fillmore on the morning of April
29 and, “with assistance from the Fillmore Police Department conducted a traffic stop.” A
subsequent search of the vehicle uncovered stolen vehicle control units believed to be tied to the
earlier burglaries.
Leyva and McMurtrey were taken into custody and transported to Ventura County Jail, where
they were booked on charges of burglary, grand theft, vandalism and conspiracy to commit a
crime. Both suspects are currently being held without bail.
