Three active-duty military families who were being relocated on Christmas Day had their holiday upended even further when the moving truck with their belongings was stolen, the authorities said.

The California Highway Patrol said the families were relocating from the East Coast when the truck, with a 53-foot trailer carrying their property valued at more than $100,000, was stolen in Stockton, Calif.

Investigators located the truck on Dec. 28 in Manteca, Calif., about 15 miles away, the Highway Patrol said.

Later that night, investigators executed a search warrant at the home of Michael Travis Forward and recovered about 90 percent of the families’ belongings. Mr. Forward was a member of the moving crew, Officer Ruben Jones of the Highway Patrol said.