UPPER LAKE, Calif. – Authorities are investigating a case of arson that damaged a pickup belonging to an Iraq War vet who recently moved to the community with his family.

Rob and Sara Sanchez and their children stood on their front lawn of their Melody Lane home in Upper Lake Wednesday afternoon, watching as Lake County Sheriff's evidence technicians combed through the burned Ford pickup and the items inside, taking photographs and dusting for fingerprints.

The family is baffled by what could have led to the destruction of their pickup, which they found when preparing to take their daughter to school early Wednesday morning.

The Sanchezes estimates the arson took place sometime between 1:30 a.m. and 6:30 a.m. Wednesday.

A gas container that doesn't belong to the family was found inside the truck and the evidence techs said they were able to successfully lift prints that they hope will lead them to the suspects.

The pickup was one of several parked on the street overnight but the only one damaged, Sara Sanchez said.

Northshore Fire Chief Jay Beristianos suggested that, with the vehicle unlocked, it could have been a crime motivated by opportunity.

The blaze was confined to the pickup's extended cab, which has tinted windows, believed to be one of the reasons why the fire wasn't noticed at the time it occurred.

A storage bin that had been in the pickup was found tossed into a nearby yard, Sara Sanchez said.

Gasoline was dumped on the seats. There appeared to be two combustion points, one on the center front seat and one on the backseat, Beristianos said.

The white 2008 Ford F-250 Super Duty is expected to be totaled out due to the damage, Rob Sanchez said. The interior was ruined and, while some of the exterior appeared OK, the fire had burned through the top of the cab.

An Iraq War vet, Sanchez and his family previously were in Colorado when they decided to move to Upper Lake, where Sara Sanchez had been raised.

The family moved to Lake County last December following Rob Sanchez's discharge from the Army.

The only questionable issue they've had with anyone was last Friday when they were sitting with friends in their front yard and found laser pointers trained on them.

For a veteran like Rob Sanchez, a green laser pointer looks like what is used on weaponry, and he and two friends went to confront two white male teens walking through the neighborhood who admitted to using the pointers.

The destruction of their vehicle comes at a difficult time for the family.

Rob Sanchez is about to begin school to study for a career in law enforcement and is waiting for funds from the Veterans Administration.

A sheriff's deputy has taken a report and is investigating the case, according to Lt. Steve Brooks.

Brooks asked that anyone with information about the crime call the Lake County Sheriff's Office's nonemergency dispatch number at 707-263-2690.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.