VENETA – On Jan. 29 at 7 a.m., a Lane County Sheriff’s sergeant assigned to Veneta stopped a pickup truck towing a box trailer in the area of Territorial Highway and Jeans Road for a traffic violation. Deputies discovered that the trailer contained stolen property, including several firearms. Deputies cited the driver, Brian Joseph Mitzel, 52, of Veneta, and seized the trailer for follow-up investigation. Deputies later learned the trailer had been stolen from a Eugene business that night. The trailer and firearms were returned to the owners as deputies continued their investigation. After obtaining evidence from the location where the trailer was stolen, the sergeant re-contacted Mitzel and he was charged with felon in possession of a firearm, unlawful use of a motor vehicle, theft in the first degree, and two counts of criminal mischief in the second degree.
Traffic violation leads to arrest in Veneta
