Felon arrested on Highway 1 for driving with stolen license plates

A new officer on field duty arrested a driver on Highway 1 after his vehicle was discovered to have a stolen license plate attached to it. The Capitola Police Department's newest employee was alerted to a nearby stolen license plate while monitoring vehicle traffic on Bay Avenue. Shortly thereafter, the officer noticed the stolen license plate on a Nissan sedan and conducted a traffic stop on Highway 1. The driver was detained and the officer confirmed the license plate belonged to a Toyota. The officer conducted a search of the car which resulted in the driver's arrest for illegal possession of pepper spray, illegal display of license plates, possession of stolen license plate, driving without a license and other outstanding warrants. The department said the suspect was known to them due to previous theft arrests.