LPD: Man stole SUV from Lincoln driver who gave him ride, used marker to change plate number

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) — A Lincoln man who gave a stranger a ride Thursday ended up getting taken for a ride himself, police say.

Just before 11 p.m., a 52-year-old man reported that his SUV was stolen near 14th Street and Old Cheney Road.

The man told police that he had met 29-year-old Tyler Livengood earlier that night at a gas station at 17th and Q streets.

Livengood asked him for a ride to the area of 14th and Old Cheney, according to court documents, so they drove to the Phillips 66 there.

The victim went inside to buy some things but realized he left his credit card in the SUV.

So he gave Livengood the key and had him bring the card, an arrest affidavit says.

But when the victim finished paying, he saw that both Livengood and his vehicle were gone, according to the Lincoln Police Department.

The victim had a tracker on the SUV, which was almost out of gas.

He tracked it to the Phillips 66 off Highway 77 and Rosa Parks Way and told police.

Officers found Livengood filling the tank and took him into custody, the affidavit says.

Police said they searched him and found four hydrocodone-acetaminophen pills. That is a prescription painkiller, but the affidavit says the bottle did not have a name on it.

The rear license plate was bent upward, and police think Livengood used a marker to change one of the numbers on the front license plate.

Livengood was charged with felony theft by unlawful taking and possession of a controlled substance.

He appeared in court Friday, and a judge set his bond at $5,000.

His next court hearing is scheduled for Dec. 19.