Cash Returned

Two young men do the right thing

About Town – TUESDAY, 3/31/26

Lodi PD Officer Nicole Alvarez was working the counter at the police department a couple weeks ago when two young men showed up with a wallet they had found alongside the road near Highway 12 and I-5. Officer Alvarez thumbed through the wallet and saw there was about $1,900 in cash and some high-end credits cards. The boys, aged 18 and 16, wanted to turn it in and make sure it was returned to the rightful owner. The lost wallet belonged to a woman from L.A. who had stopped to gas up at Flag City about the same time the young men were doing the same. She apparently drove off with her wallet on the roof of her car, Alvarez says. It took some detective work to find a name and phone number for the woman. When contacted, the lady said she was “looking like a crazy person” for her wallet in the gas station parking lot. The woman and the 16-year-old want to remain anonymous, but the other boy’s name is Issac, says Alvarez. “I wanted to hug the kids for doing the right thing,” she says, thinking the lady was lucky the boys found her wallet and not someone else. “It has restored my faith in humanity,” says Alvarez.

COMING HOME: The city council is poised to hire John Luebberke as Interim city attorney, filling the position being vacated by Katie Lucchesi. Luebberke has been here before. He was Lodi’s deputy city attorney in the mid-90s. He resigned in 1999 to join an L.A. law firm. He later went to the city of Stockton and eventually became their city attorney. He resigned the position in 2022 after spending 20 years with Stockton and now works for Herum\Crabtree\Suntag.

GET OUT THE VOTE: Last year the fire department took delivery of a new ladder truck, and what a handsome ladder it is. It’s already been entered into a beauty contest of sorts sponsored by the company that made it. The Fire Truck Face-Off is a friendly competition between departments across the state. It provides departments an opportunity to strut their red stuff hoping to garner enough votes to win the contest. It’s all in good fun, of course, as communities vote for their favorite red rig. Lodi’s new truck made it to the third round and the department is looking to you for votes. Your next chance to vote for Lodi starts tomorrow, April 1. If Lodi wins again, it will advance to the final round with voting starting on April 7. When the votes are tallied the winning department will receive a $1,500 prize to be donated to their favorite charity (Lodi Animal Shelter), a custom bronze commemorative badge to display on the truck, a picture in the 2027 Pierce and Golden State Fire calendar, and bragging rights. To cast your vote, visit firetruckfaceoff.com.

INSIDE INFO: The new Pietro’s Trattoria in Reynolds Ranch near Costco is not only famous for their food, but now also their men’s bathroom. On the wall inside are sketches of