Hesperia Airport Employee Arrested in Connection with Aviator Cafe Burglary

    Nov. 5, 2019

    By Martin Estacio

    Source Daily Press, Victorville, Calif. (TNS)

    A Hesperia Airport employee has been identified as one of the suspects responsible for burglarizing a cafe that recently closed there.

    Detectives said Stephen Vespe, 65, was identified as one of those involved who "forced open a window" into the Aviator Cafe, "entered, and took approximately $1,800 in hand and power tools along with an $800.00, 5 foot gumball machine," according to the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department.

    Authorities said detectives executed a search warrant at a maintenance hangar at the airport and Vespe's residence in Hesperia and were able to return the stolen items.

    The burglaries reportedly happened between 10:44 a.m. on Saturday and noon on Sunday, according to a Sheriff's statement.

    Aviator Cafe co-owner Sarah Mayne told the Daily Press break-in probably occurred after she had taken photos and videos of the cafe's conditions earlier that Saturday.

    The cafe closed its doors on its Hesperia location on Oct. 20. The owners announced earlier in the month that airport management decided not to extend their lease, which expired Thursday.

    FAA records list Debbie Vespe as the airport's manager. Mayne said Stephen Vespe is her husband. The statement did not say whether he had been arrested.

    "The burglary wasn't a surprise," Mayne said. She said items had gone missing in the past, including a ladder that disappeared and then "magically reappeared" the following morning.

    On Saturday, Mayne said the cafe had been mostly cleared out.

    After the burglary, in addition to the stolen items, she said booths had been slashed and holes in the walls, damage she hadn't documented earlier.

    Mayne also mentioned external surveillance cameras monitoring the cafe had been removed before the break in. She said there were other cameras throughout the airport, however. The cafe's new location, dubbed the Little Aviator, is set to open at Apple Valley Airport on Saturday.

    Anyone with information regarding the investigation is asked to contact the Hesperia Detectives Bureau at 760-947-1500 or Sheriff's dispatch at 760-956-5001.

    Persons wishing to remain anonymous may contact the We-Tip Hotline at 1-800-782-7463 or online at www.WeTip.com.

    Martin Estacio may be reached at [email protected] or at 760-955-5358. Follow him on Twitter @DP_mestacio.

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    Josh Smith