VENETA, Ore. – A traffic stop in Veneta uncovered a stolen trailer containing firearms, leading to an arrest, according to the Lane County Sheriff’s Office.
LCSO officials said that deputies at 7 a.m. on Jan. 29 stopped a pickup hauling a box trailer on Territorial Highway and Jeans Road for a traffic violation. The driver, identified as 52-year-old Brian Joseph Mitzel of Veneta, was cited and the trailer was seized. Deputies discovered the trailer had been stolen from a Eugene business overnight, sheriff’s officials said.
The stolen trailer and firearms were returned to their owners. The investigation continued, and evidence led deputies back to Mitzel, who was arrested on Feb. 4 in Veneta and taken to the Lane County Jail, according to authorities and jail records. Mitzel faces multiple charges, including felon in possession of a firearm and theft in the first degree…