Two charged in Friendswood trailer theft

A man blocked two people who were trying to steal a trailer Tuesday outside a Friendswood paintball facility, police say.

A friend of the owner of Paintball Zone, 2811 Dixie Farm Road, was driving past the business Tuesday shortly after 1 p.m. when he saw two men hooking up a trailer to a truck. The trailer belonged to the business owner, Friendswood Police spokesperson Lisa Price says.

"[The friend] called the owner, who confirmed that no one should be picking up the trailer," Price says. "The owner called the police, and the owner's friend blocked the exit."

Because the suspects couldn't take the main way out of the business, Price says, they tried to cut the lock off of a gate that also lead out of the property. A police officer pulling up in an unmarked car witnessed the suspects trying to leave, she says.

The officer then ordered both suspects to lie on the ground and waited for backup officers, Price says.

Christopher Adrian Rodriguez, 29, and Raymond Castillon Tamez, 18, both of Houston, are charged with felony theft. Both are being held at the Friendswood City Jail, Price says.

Police think Rodriguez hired Tamez to help him steal the trailer. "There was nothing in the trailer," Price says. "It was a dual-axle utility trailer with a ramp, valued at $2,500."

"The two men damaged a hinge on the gate getting onto the property, and damaged the coupling on the trailer itself, which is estimated at $600 damage," Price says.