Pair Arrested for Felony Metal Theft at Goodyear Bayport Chemical Plant

Two 42-year-old men, Brent John Wentland and Samuel Ignacio Esparza, were arrested early Wednesday morning, April 9th, after being caught trespassing and stealing metal from the Goodyear Bayport Chemical Plant in the 13400 block of Bay Area Blvd in La Porte.

The Precinct 8 Dispatch Center received a call about suspicious persons trespassing at the plant around 2:38 AM. Harris County Sheriff’s Office Deputies arriving at the scene discovered that Wentland and Esparza had unlawfully entered the secured facility by cutting through a chain-link fence. Once inside, they proceeded to steal specialized metal flanges, copper welding leads, and various other scrap metals.

Plant employees confronted the suspects, who then fled the scene. Responding deputies quickly established a perimeter around a nearby wooded area. The Houston Police Department’s (HPD) Fox helicopter provided aerial support and detected two heat signatures believed to be the suspects. However, the helicopter had to depart due to low fuel.

Shortly thereafter, officers from the Pasadena Police Department arrived with an aerial drone and successfully reacquired the suspects’ locations. With the assistance of Harris County Sheriff’s Office K-9 units, both Wentland and Esparza were located and taken into custody.

The Harris County District Attorney’s Office accepted felony metal theft charges against the pair, and they were subsequently booked into the Harris County Jail. Bonds for both Wentland and Esparza were later set at $15,000.