A classic sedan owned by Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong that was reported stolen in Costa Mesa over the weekend was found in an unincorporated area near Orange but was missing thousands of dollars in music gear.
The pearl 1962 Chevy II with a brown and cheetah-print interior had been parked on Victoria Street, east of the Santa Ana River, when it was taken last week, between Friday evening and Saturday morning, Costa Mesa police said.
Tips from the public helped detectives find the car in El Modena on Tuesday evening, Feb. 8, police said on Wednesday.
“Joy ride? Maybe.. who knows. We live in desperate times,” Armstrong wrote in an Instagram post Wednesday afternoon. “Thank God it’s all in one piece. No damage. Thank you, thank you to everyone that searched for my Chevy.”
Armstrong said the Chevy was “near and dear” to him and his family and had asked the public for help in a Twitter post after it went missing. He bought it from a friend in 1993 and has been tinkering with it ever since then. He replaced its motor numerous times over the years.
On Sunday, he thanked everyone who shared his tweet in a YouTube video and had a message for those who took the Chevy.
“To the people who stole it, the one thing is, like, I don’t want anyone to go to jail. That sucks, y’know,” the chart-topping musician said with a chuckle. “Just drop it off. Or, y’know, if you do get caught, I’ll bail you out. I just want my car back.”
The vehicle had been abandoned but wasn’t missing any parts when officers found it, Costa Mesa police spokeswoman Roxi Fyad said.
But still missing were a burnt-orange Aria Pro II V guitar, a champagne-color Roland GR-707 guitar/synth controller, and a Fender Super Bassman amp head that were inside the Chevy.
No arrests had been made.
It would be difficult for thieves to unload the stolen equipment at a reputable shop without getting caught, said Tyler Lacag, a manager at Imperial Vintage Guitars in Orange. Victims who lose such instruments usually reach out to nearby stores, and word can spread quickly among local guitarists.
“If someone comes in here trying to sell some gear but it feels sketchy, we just won’t bother with it,” Lacag said. “But put it on OfferUp or somewhere else on the internet at a low price to sell quickly, and a buyer might not ever know it was stolen.”
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