A license-plate camera alert and a coordinated team effort ended with Buda police arresting 35-year-old James Alexander Sciano on March 3, according to investigators. Officers pulled Sciano over near the intersection of FM 1626 and RM 967, then booked him into the Hays County Jail on a $17,000 bond. Authorities allege the investigation uncovered evidence tied to vehicle burglaries and identity-fraud offenses, which in turn led to three arrest warrants.
THOROUGH INVESTIGATION AND COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS SHOW CRIME DOESN’T PAY IN BUDA Thank you @HaysSheriff@Walmart@Flock_Safetypic.twitter.com/YmJdI60jCX
— Buda Police Department (@Buda_Police) March 4, 2026
Investigation Relied on Video and License-Plate Alerts
According to the Buda Police Department, a Flock Safety automatic license-plate reader sent up the first red flag by generating an alert on a vehicle that matched Sciano’s car. Loss-prevention staff at Walmart San Marcos then supplied store-surveillance footage that officers say helped identify him. Deputies with the Hays County Sheriff’s Office carried out the traffic stop at FM 1626 and RM 967 and took the 35-year-old into custody. Investigators credited Corporal Lopasky and Detective Martinez with tracking the leads and securing three arrest warrants.
Garlic Creek Cameras and Local Partnerships
Garlic Creek homeowners were among the earliest in Buda to install Flock Safety license-plate readers, a move the HOA said would help ward off thieves and give detectives a leg up, as reported by the Hays Free Press. The broader rollout of ALPR technology has not exactly been quiet in Hays County, and the San Marcos Record has documented ongoing debates over privacy and how the cameras have figured into earlier arrests. Those discussions highlight how donated neighborhood systems and big-box surveillance video now routinely end up in local case files.
Charges and Booking
Per the Buda Police Department, Sciano faces two counts of fraud use or possession of identifying information, including a state-jail felony and a second-degree felony. He is also charged with credit-card or debit-card abuse, a state-jail felony, and burglary of vehicles, a Class A misdemeanor. He remains in the Hays County Jail on a $17,000 bond while the case moves toward prosecution. In its public statement, the department wrote that the thorough investigation and community partnerships show that crime does not pay in Buda.
Next Steps and Neighborhood Takeaways…