Police blotter — March 12

By DAILY SOUND STAFF — March 12, 2010

Feb. 28, 3:39 a.m. — Witnesses called police to report a suspicious vehicle parked in a lot in the 200 block of W. Carrillo Street. Officers arrived and cast their spotlights on the vehicle in question, giving them a clear look at the driver.

As officers exited their squad cars to investigate further, the vehicle sped away, heading south on De la Vina Street at speeds topping 80 mph. Authorities followed and saw the driver speed through a red light before coming to a construction site in the 500 block of De la Vina Street.

By the time officers caught up, the driver had fled on foot through the construction site. Police tracked the registered owner of the vehicle to an address in the 200 block of Cottage Grove Avenue. Officers also did a cursory search of the car and found a prescription pill bottle with a man’s name on the label.

After heading to the home, authorities found the same man, a 30-year-old, on the roof, partially dressed. The residence belonged to his girlfriend’s parents, and the suspect’s girlfriend told officers that he showed up in a panic shortly before police arrived.

A detailed search of the vehicle turned up a container with a dark, sticky substance identified as tar heroin, as well as a scale and a razor blade. The 30-year-old suspect denied ever being in the vehicle that night, but officers recognized him as the driver they saw parked in the lot on Carrillo Street.

Authorities booked the man for evading, driving while under the influence, being under the influence of a controlled substance and possession of heroin.

March 4, 8:12 p.m. — Reports of a robbery brought officers to the intersection of Gutierrez Street and Mellifont Avenue, where the victim said an acquaintance had demanded money he said was owed to his family.

The victim denied owing any money to the suspect, who responded by grabbing the victim by the coat and throwing him to the ground. The 21-year-old suspect held him down while another man took his wallet.

After leaving the area, the suspect returned minutes later in a vehicle and rifled through the victim’s wallet. Upon finding no money, he threw it and its contents on the ground. The victim collected his belongings and called the police.

He told officers he knew the suspect, as he had lived with him for a short time several years ago. After the victim identified his attacker in a photo lineup, authorities took the 21-year-old into custody near his home in the 200 block of S. Voluntario Street. Police booked the suspect for strong-arm robbery.

March 7, 10:47 p.m. — A woman called police to report suspicious circumstances involving an advertisement posted on Craigslist. After receiving several phone calls during the weekend, the victim discovered someone had posted her photo and phone number in the adult services section of the popular online classifieds site.

The victim told police she suspected a former roommate of posting the ad. She had left their shared residence before the lease ended after becoming upset with the living situation, which apparently included loud parties.

She received more than 50 calls on her cell phone during the weekend before she was able to get the advertisement removed from Craigslist, and told police she will likely have to change her phone number.

March 8, 7:30 p.m. — A witness called authorities to report a possible intoxicated driver who had parked in the 200 block of W. Arrellaga Street. Officers found the 30-year-old man passed out in the driver’s seat.

Police noted the man had a strong odor of alcohol, slurred speech and could not maintain his balance. The 30-year-old denied driving and the witness refused to provide any more information to authorities.

Concerned that the man might attempt to drive, officers took him to the sobering center. The suspect refused to follow the rules at the center, so authorities booked him into jail for public intoxication.

March 9, 6:15 p.m. — An undercover officer observed suspicious activity near the intersection of Nopal and Haley streets, and called in uniformed backup after seeing a possible hand-to-hand drug transaction.

Authorities detained a 28-year-old man and discovered he had a small amount of crystal meth, a second baggie with drug residue, a meth pipe and a fake Social Security card. The man also had a receipt from a local business with his name and the Social Security number, indicating he had used the fake document to gain employment.

The suspect told police he purchased the card for $100. Authorities took him into custody for possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of a counterfeit document.

March 10, 10:30 a.m. — Responding to reports of a man breaking into his former residence and refusing to leave, police arrived at an apartment in the 400 block of Old Coast Highway and found the 26-year-old suspect inside.

Officers immediately noticed that the man’s pupils were very dilated given the light levels in the room and questioned him about possible drug use. The suspect said he had a prescription for methadone, prompting officers to ask for proof.

The 26-year-old led them outside to a nearby storage shed, where he produced a backpack that contained neither a prescription nor methadone. However, the bag did contain seven syringes, a container and soda can coated with white residue, and cotton balls.

Officers took the suspect to the police station for a drug evaluation and obtained a urine sample before booking him into jail. The 26-year-old faces charges of being under the influence of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of syringes.

Comment on this article

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Poster:

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IF YOU WANT AN AD, BUY AN AD, JERRYJO : 3/12/2010

Please remove this unpaid ad. Thx

Beachguy

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El pollo loco : 3/12/2010

"Ain't nobody on this roof but us chickens, officer!"

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: 3/12/2010

Hard to believe only six crimes happened in this town. Why don't you tell us about all the other stuff happening..... or has city council muzzled you?

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: 3/12/2010

Half dressed on the roof Hahahahahahaha sounds like something off the movie Friday

Junkie logic

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Complete police report needed : 3/12/2010

I agree that a fuller police report is needed. The department should be able to easily show a map for each day (or any time period) with the type of crime marked on it. Why is less more to them? Maybe the public would see how few crimes are going on normally and support a reduction in officers? I hope not. The public could surely help in keeping an eye out for crime if they knew what was already happening. I think this would reduce crime in SB.

brain lifter

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Monthly SB Police report is online : 3/12/2010

Check out:
http://www.santabarbaraca.gov/Government/Departments/Police/Crime_Statistics.htm?js=false
I do not quite get all the categories and districts, but it is a step in the right direction.

brain dropper

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Blues Blues : 3/12/2010

In 2000 their was 6 murders in SB, 2008 there was 60 murders in SB. What are the SB Police Dept doing to solve REAL crime. Loosing 23 officers may provide us with another 23 who want to do their job and solve real crime. Parking tickets are stupid. 75 minutes downtown parking should be 1h 45 minutes rather then the old the 30minutes parking with a recession. 10.3 Unemployment .

Better life in SB

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: 3/14/2010

Nope, this is it. These calls are it. The PD only responded to these 6 calls in the last week. A monkey could do this job. And did I say, I love MONKEYS!

dodobirdtodamax!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Crime map : 3/15/2010

http://www.spotcrime.com/ca/santa+barbara

JG

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