Joyride ends with pickup on fire

Staff Reports

A Gardnerville Ranchos teenager was cited Thursday after he took his father's pickup on a joyride that ended with the vehicle on fire.

Authorities received multiple calls from witnesses who saw the 2003 GMC Sierra travelling with a left front flat tire throwing sparks on Kimmerling Road, according to Sgt. Tom Mezzetta of the Douglas County Sheriff's Office.

The pickup drove off the side of the road at the intersection with Rojo Drive and struck a stop sign and a road marker. The 14-year-old driver was seen exiting the pickup at about 6:40 p.m. and running from the scene. He was followed by some of the witnesses.

The pickup caught fire and by the time firefighters arrived was fully ablaze.

With the help of witnesses and the registration to the pickup, deputies went to an address on Verdi, where they confronted the boy. Mezzetta said that at first the boy denied the incident and then when pressed by his father admitted it.

"He said he found the keys to the truck and went for a ride around the Ranchos," Mezzetta said. "He heard a pop and tried to get the pickup home."

Deputies found fluid and tracks on the roadway that implied the vehicle had been driven to the Dresslerville sand pits, but the boy denied driving there.

He was cited for unlawful taking of a motor vehicle, driving without a license, failing to report an accident and obstructing a police officer. His name is being withheld due to his age.