Photo: Northgate High
WALNUT CREEK — Was it his camouflage clothing? A suspicious-looking man who apparently ran out of gas was arrested on May 16, when police officers found him near a school where he allegedly parked a stolen car.
Staff at Northgate High School phoned police and reported seeing a man dressed in camouflage clothing. In addition, he was carrying a mysterious-looking bag on the school campus during lunch hour.
Staff told the police that the man was spotted near a car in the school parking lot, before he started roaming around campus and arousing suspicions.
Police officers were dispatched at 1:14 p.m. and the school located at 425 Castle Rock Road was placed under lockdown as a precaution. For about 20 minutes officers searched for the man.
He was no longer on campus when the police arrived. As a result, the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office sent a helicopter to help officers on the ground find him.
Police located the man walking along a trail adjacent to the school. He explained that he was looking for somewhere to buy gas. By then, police had determined that the car in the school parking lot was reported stolen in San Leandro. There was no indication that the man intended to harm anyone at the school, police said.
Officers arrested James E. Nisleit, a 42-year-old transient from Fremont, who remains in custody at the West County Detention Facility, charged with possession of stolen property (a stolen vehicle), and possession of a leaded cane martial arts weapon. Bail was set at $20,000.
