An SRJC student was convicted in the theft of 14 solar panels from a solar panel installation class Aug. 26, each with an estimated value of $500.
Matthew Anope, 42, forced entry into the classroom and went immediately for the panels weighing roughly 20 pounds each. Anope was a student in the class prior to the theft, giving him knowledge that the panels were in the room unprotected.
“The solar panels were used for educational purposes so it was nice to get that back for the benefit of the students,” said SRJC District Police Officer Joe Richards.
The crime took place in August at the South West Center on SRJC’s Santa Rosa campus. Through the course of the SRJC’s District Police investigation in collaboration with the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Department, the officers were able to determine the name of the suspect and secure a search warrant of Anope’s house, but did not find any of the solar panels. However, the Sherrif’s Department found and took custody of 12 of the 14 panels.
An anonymous source told police that he lived in a halfway home with Anope and saw him with the panels. Another source claimed to have seen two of the panels being placed into the back of a yellow pickup truck.
The suspect admitted to selling at least one of the panels for methamphetamines.
“The suspect had multiple priors for theft and was sentenced to six months in county jail,” Richards said.