BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — Rural crime is escalating across Kern County's vast agricultural and oil-producing regions, creating mounting challenges for farmers and energy companies who face repeated thefts and property damage on their expansive properties.
Steve Murray, co-founder of Murray Family Farms, recently discovered criminals had broken into a barn he rents, stealing everything inside, including two trailers and approximately three semi-truck loads of metallic equipment.
"We had two trailers here. So they stole our trailers. And then they stole there was probably three semi loads of metallic equipment that was in here. And so they stole the everything that was inside of here came back, and then they stole half of the fence," Murray said.
The persistent nature of rural crime is evident in the repeated damage to Murray's property. Criminals have cut through his fence in 18 different locations rather than using existing openings.
"We've had people cut through the fence in 18 different spots. You'd think they'd go through the same hole, but every time they come, they cut another hole," Murray said.
Sergeant Corey Stacy, who has worked with the Kern County Sheriff's Office's Rural Crime Unit on and off for over a decade, confirms the problem is intensifying.
"I would say a lot of it is relatively the same types of crimes that we're seeing just more of it," Stacy said.
The Rural Crime Unit focuses not only on investigating crimes but also on prevention, helping property owners secure their vast holdings.
"We're not just an Investigations Unit, you know, we are also there to give those victims, mostly, you know, the farmers that have a vast amount of properties, how to secure their properties, how to harden the sites to make any type of criminal activity harder for it to happen," Stacy said.
Murray appreciates the unit's work as they investigate the barn break-in. He emphasizes that while property theft is concerning, he's grateful no one was injured.
"Everywhere we are, you know, we get petty theft. People don't come out in the country to commit mayhem. You know, they come out of the country to opportunities," Murray said.
"This is incidental, that you know when somebody gets hurt. It. That's what we're worried about," Murray said.
Stacy urges all rural crime victims to report incidents, even if they seem minor, as this helps law enforcement track patterns and respond to emerging issues in specific areas.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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