Authorities are hunting for two East Bay men, who have have been named as suspects in connection with stealing more than $1 million in gold from the Siskiyou County courthouse last year.
According to the Siskiyou Sheriff's Office on Saturday, David Dean Johnson, 49, of El Cerrito and Scott Wayne Bailey, 51, of El Sobrante, are wanted on $1 million arrest warrants.
The two allegedly broke into the gold collection at the Siskiyou County Courthouse in Yreka in February 2012 and made off with $1,257,500 in gold, jewelry and artifacts.
"These thieves stole a part of Siskiyou County history, which represents the hard work, sacrifice, traditions, and pioneer spirit which characterizes the personality of Siskiyou County and its citizens - past and present," Siskiyou County Sheriff Jon Lopey said in a statement.
Aftermaking off with the gold, jewelry and artifacts, the suspects allegedly used the money from the sale of the goods to purchase "high-value" items, Lopey said.
The entire gold collection before the theft was valued at about $3 million. Lopey said it would be "highly speculative" to guess how much of the gold, if any, would eventually be recovered.
When detectives traveled to the Bay Area looking for the two suspects on Thursday, they found additional evidence, Siskiyou County sheriff's detectives said, without disclosing what they found.
Surveillance footage captured video images of two men breaking into the courthouse but the alarm that was rigged to notify Yreka police and sheriff's deputies did not sound off.
