SAN RAFAEL – San Rafael Police Department has issued a warning to the public about a phone scam involving the impersonation of sheriff’s deputies demanding bail.

Multiple reports from residents to the San Rafael PD have indicated that an unknown suspect(s) is identifying himself as a sheriff’s deputy. The impersonator tells residents that they either have outstanding warrants or that they have missed jury duty. The impersonator then says that in order to avoid being arrested bail must be posted immediately in cash, and asks potential victims to meet them at a location.

The San Rafael PD advises that this is a phone scam and that law enforcement agencies do not conduct these types of phone calls. The Marin County Sheriff’s Department is aware of the scam and has received similar reports. This type of scam has been seen all over the U.S., some seeking cash or gift cards, and some asking for social security numbers to verify a false jury duty summons.

Residents are advised not to follow through on the demands and to contact local law enforcement. People with caller ID are encouraged to record the incoming phone number and to provide it to authorities.

The San Rafael PD is following up on current leads to identify the impersonator(s). Anyone with further information about this crime is asked to call San Rafael PD at (415) 485-3000 or Crime Stoppers at (800) 222-8477. The Crime Stopper line will accommodate all languages. Callers can remain anonymous and may earn a possible reward.

Tips can also be made online at www.bayareacrimestoppers.org. Information can also be provided by using the SRPD Silent Witness tip form available at www.srpd.org/tips.

Santa Barbara - In spite of the daunting odds of having a successful and lasting marital union in America today—where the divorce rate (3.6 per 1,000 population) is more than half the current marriage rate (6.8 per 1,000 population)—some marriages do follow the vows calling for devotion to the coupling in spite of any manner of adversity.

Those loving devotionals vows may surely be tested in the case of Mr. & Mrs. Alejandro Mendibles Jr, both of whom were arrested in the early evening of November 1st by members of the Santa Barbara Police Department’s Narcotics Unit. According to SBPD Public Information Officer Sgt. Riley Harwood, for the better part of two months Mendibles and his wife Haydee Marisol Ochoa Mendibles, 41, had been the focus of an ongoing “investigation into Mendibles’ narcotics activities” which ultimately led to the service of a search warrant upon their residence and vehicle.

Haydee Marisol Ochoa Mendibles

The SBPD Narcotics Unit, working in tandem with the Santa Barbara Regional Narcotics Enforcement Team and the SBPD Criminal Impact Team had their eyes on the husband and wife at approximately 7:30 p.m. on November 1st when they alighted from their car and strolled toward their San Pascual Street apartment. They were brought up short by multiple officers and informed that they were the subject of a lawful search, whereupon an examination of their persons and vehicle was conducted.

Haydee Mendibles, like most women, was carrying a handbag…but unlike most handbags, this one was found to contain “nearly one-half pound of methamphetamine valued at $4,000”. When queried as to the reason her purse had more than a lipstick, wallet, and car keys inside, the devoted wife Mrs. Mendibles admitted that she “was carrying the drug on behalf of her husband who was out of custody on bail following a previous possession of methamphetamine for sale arrest.”

Further investigation pursuant to the warrant revealed the couple to be in possession of more than $3,000 in cash, along with “other indicia of drug sales”, according to Harwood.

Both husband and wife were arrested on the scene and transported to Santa Barbara County Jail where they were booked on charges of possession of methamphetamine for sale, transportation of methamphetamine, and conspiracy to possess methamphetamine for sale. Alejandro, 45, was also charged with committing a felony while released from custody on bail. His bail was set at $55,000, while his loving wife’s bail was set at $30,000.

Photos: Courtesy Santa Barbara County Jail Booking

Read more:

EdHat: Drug dealers arrested

Independent: Married couple arrested for meth sales

Noozhawk: SB couple accused of meth sales

After Susan Hoskins called 911 to report she had just shot her husband, Bryan Hoskins, the dispatcher asked why she had shot him. Susan Hoskins replied matter-of-factly, ““Because he’s an [a—h–-] and he kept calling me a whore,” Bryan Hoskins Sr., 60, moaned loudly in the background.

By the time police arrived, Bryan Hoskins lay near death on the kitchen floor. He gasped twice for air and then was pronounced dead, Woodland police Sergeant Jason Brooks testified. An autopsy revealed Bryan died of a single gunshot wound to the chest that tore a hole in his aorta.

Having reported the shooting to the 911 dispatcher, Susan Hoskins could then be heard conversing with her husband in a recording played in open court on November 7, according to a Davis Enterprise report. “Where did I shoot you?” Susan could be heard asking Bryan. “Sit down and let me see where I shot you,” Susan told Bryan. Bryan could be heard mumbling what sounded like a “help” in the background.

Susan then explained to the 911 dispatcher that Bryan was “leaning over the sink,” but that she could not tell where she had shot him.

After the recording concluded, Yolo Superior Court Judge Samuel McAdam ruled that he had heard evidence sufficient to warrant a trial for Susan, a Woodland Healthcare nurse, on charges of murder and unlawful use of a firearm in the August 3 death of her husband, a retired Yolo County probation officer.

Susan’s defense attorney, Shannan Dugan, had claimed, before McAdam’s ruling, that she was a victim of domestic violence and should, at most, face a manslaughter charge. According to Dugan, the Hoskins’s 15-year marriage was troubled. In fact, they lived in separate townhomes within the same complex; they’d retreat to their separate living quarters after many altercations. Dugan also said several of Susan’s coworkers provided details about how horrible the situation was; neighbors have said the couple fought like cats and dogs.

Hoskins, 59, now faces arraignment on November 21. She is being held without bail at the Yolo County Jail.

Read More:

Davis Enterprise: Trial ordered in husband’s shooting death

CrimeVoice: Woman Charged in Woodland Husband Killing Case Finally Arraigned

Ventura County - As Benjamin Franklin himself remarked, “glass, china, and reputation are easily cracked, and never mended well,” words that might well be applied to the personal, public, and legal histories of Salvador Velgara, a 26-year old resident of Fillmore, in eastern Ventura County.

Having already acquired a felony record and known by law enforcement authorities as a documented gang member, Velgara might naturally expect to be under the watchful eye of the Ventura County Sheriff’s Gang Unit and to conduct himself with a degree of circumspect caution throughout his daily affairs. Such does not appear to be the case, as Velgara—recently “suspected of illegal firearms and narcotics activity” according to VCSD spokesman Det. J. Holt—was the subject of a search warrant served upon his residence on October 31st.

During the search of his residence and vehicle, Velgara was found to be in possession of multiple firearms, including an unregistered assault rifle, a plethora of ammunition, and various narcotics, which Holt did not specify in his report to the media. Joanna Cruz, 24, was also in the house, along with her two small children. VCSD Narcotics Detectives conducted a thorough Drug Endangered Children investigation and ultimately remanded the children into the custody of Child Protective Services.

Both Velgara and Cruz were arrested at the scene and transported to Ventura County Jail where he was booked on charges of possession of marcotics for sale while armed with a loaded, operable firearm, possession of an assault weapon, being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition, and street terrorism. As he was out on bail at the time of his arrest, his bail was set at $500,000.

For her failure to qualify as Mother of the Year, Cruz was charged with felony child endangerment, possession of narcotics for sale while armed with a loaded, operable firearm, and possession of an assault weapon, with her bail set at $250,000.

Read more:

Fillmore Gazette: Fillmore man arrested on various charges

Sespe Sun: Assault weapons/narcotics sales/child endangerment

VCStar: Two arrested after search warrant carried out

Ventura - Standing squarely in the “one thing leads to another on Halloween” column, Erick Hernandez, 19, and Edward Juarez, 18, hailing respectively from Ventura and Camarillo, were arrested in the wee morning hours of October 31st following a 911 Emergency call received by the Ventura Police Department Command Center reporting “two gunshots fired” in a Ventura residential area.

According to the media report filed by the Ventura Police Department Watch Commander, “the caller told dispatchers there were four male suspects” who fled the area in a Honda sedan. Moments later, a VPD patrol unit spotted the Honda and proceeded to attempt a traffic stop, at which point the suspect vehicle accelerated through downtown Ventura, then sped through nearby residential areas, leading the pursuing black-and-white on a chase of over a mile before it lost control, bounded over a curb and slammed into a street sign, bringing it to a halt.

Undaunted, the Honda’s four passengers “then exited the vehicle and ran into an apartment complex”, at which time additional VPD units arrived on the scene to pursue the suspects on foot and establish a secure perimeter. A short time later, Juarez and an unnamed Hispanic male juvenile were located and taken into custody. As that occurred, Hernandez was spotted fleeing the area, and a VPD K-9 was sent to interrupt his flight from justice.

As K-9s are difficult to outrun in the best of circumstances, Hernandez was promptly stopped in his tracks and taken into custody by the furry officer.

Hernandez—after being medically cleared at Ventura County Medical Center for injuries sustained during his arrest at the jaws of K-9 fury—was transported to Ventura County Jail and charged with felony evading, possession of a stolen vehicle, prior felon in possession of a firearm, hit and run, and committing a crime in the furtherance of a criminal street gang. Juarez—without dogbites—was booked into Ventura County Jail and charged with resisting arrest, while the male juvenile was cited for resisting arrest and remanded to the custody of his parents.

Read more:

VCSTAR: 3 arrested after leading police on chase

Citizens Journal: Arrests made after shooting in Ventura

FORT BRAGG – MENDOCINO COUNTY – Tucker Ray Chester, a 31-year-old man who resides in Fort Bragg, sometimes as a resident of downtown Fort Bragg, and sometimes listed as a transient in the community, was on his bicycle last Monday, November 3 at about 4:30 in the afternoon, riding along Shoreline Highway – also known as Highway 1 – in the southern part of town near the Botanical Gardens. Sheriff’s deputies spotted him, and knew he was wanted on three outstanding warrants for felony and misdemeanor violation of probation, and felony burglary. They pulled over and contacted him.

Chester was seen on a bike on Highway 1 in Fort Bragg.

Chester’s history is well known to law enforcement in Fort Bragg. He was arrested in August when he and Jennifer Rae Borges occupied a vacation rental home in Mendocino without permission. He was arrested then for burglary, possession of burglar’s tools, and violation of his probation.

Records show that Tucker Chester was also arrested several other times in the past. In 2009 he was picked up for possession of narcotics. In January of 2013 he was reported to have accidentally called 9-1-1, and then when deputies arrived to investigate the call, he returned to the location in Fort Bragg, and was found to be on probation for the earlier offense, and in possession of both methamphetamine and concentrated cannabis, along with a glass pipe. He also had a suspended drivers license.

Then in April Chester was arrested for battery on a spouse or co-habitant (domestic violence). He also had a probation violation charge against him in June.

In September, 2013 he was found to have burglarized a home in Caspar, a town just south of Fort Bragg. He had broken into a garage at a home on Caspar Little Lake Road, and taken $5,500.00 worth of power tools. Sheriff’s deputies had done a probation check on Chester the same day the burglary report came in, and found a collection of tools at Chester’s Main Street, Fort Bragg residence. The tools were seized during the check, and the victim came to the Sheriff’s substation in Fort Bragg and identified them as the ones stolen from him. Chester was arrested, and reportedly admitted to breaking in the home and stealing the tools.

In February of this year, Chester posted a message on his Facebook page stating that he was then at the Salvation Army Adult Rehabilitation Center in San Francisco, in an apparent effort to clean up his life. However, in May and August of this year he was charged with disobeying the domestic relations court order. That was followed by an August 22 arrest for burglary, possession of burglar’s tools, and probation violations, leading to his warrants. He also posted to Facebook that he was moving back to Oregon, where he is originally from. His September 17 post about moving to Wolf Creek, Oregon, a small town just off Interstate 5, was perhaps premature, and likely would have been a violation of his probation. In any case, he was back in town last week.

When deputies found Chester on his bike last Monday, he was searched, and they found a two foot long steel rod, 3/4 inch in diameter. The terms of his probation disallow possession of any dangerous weapons, so he was arrested on the three warrants, and charges of possession of a dangerous weapon and probation violations. He was held at Mendocino County Jail on a no bail status.

Read More:

CrimeVoice: Couple enjoys a vacation rental – for a while

Ukiah Daily Journal (2013): Fort Bragg man arrested in power tool theft

Santa Barbara County - 20-year old Maria Chavez, a young mother and resident of the city of Guadalupe in northern Santa Barbara County is in love. She’s so deeply in love, that she has apparently abandoned her maternal instincts in favor of “going along for the ride” with her boyfriend, Angel Lopez.

Lopez, a felony parolee only 22 years of age himself and sporting an odd array of facial tattoos indicative of his interest in the lifestyle of a criminal street gang, was behind the wheel of a Toyota Sienna minivan late in the morning of November 6th when it was reported as stolen out of San Luis Obispo. When, according to Guadalupe Police Department Chief Gary Hoving, one of his department’s patrol units observed the minivan near U.S. Highway 1 and they gave pursuit, “we started to follow and the car tried to outmaneuver us.”

Maria Chavez

When Lopez realized that he was being pursued by police, he accelerated and careened through a residential neighborhood, traversing a residential back yard at speed, and then turning down a narrow alleyway where, Hoving reported “they hit power lines” and the van flipped onto its side.

When police arrived on the scene and surveyed the wreckage, they found an infant in Chavez’ arms and observed Lopez hiding in the back seat. Lopez was taken into custody at the scene and transported to Marian Regional Medical Center suffering from a broken collar bone.

Having gone through the crash while strapped into a child’s carseat, the infant was unharmed and released to Santa Barbara County Child Protective Services. Chavez was booked into Santa Barbara County Jail on charges of resisting or delaying an officer and felony child endangerment. For his part, Lopez was arrested and booked into Santa Barbara County Jail on suspicion of felony evading causing injury, possession of a stolen vehicle, and parole violation.

Read more:

Santa Maria Times: Angel Lopez

Noozhawk: Pursuit of stolen vehicle ends with crash

KSBY: High speed chase ends in crash

SANTA ROSA – The Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office reported the arrest of a home invader by the Windsor Police Department early this morning.

At approximately 1:50 am, November 10, a Windsor resident had called 911 and said that he had heard a vehicle in his driveway, and then someone trying to open his door. When he called out the person identified himself as a Sheriff’s Deputy and told the victim to come outside. Once outside the victim saw a man by a dark car, holding a flashlight in one hand and an unknown object in the other. The man frisked him and asked the victim if he wanted to be arrested.

The victim was alarmed and certain that the suspect was not a Deputy. The suspect searched the man’s trailer and told the victim to go back inside. While inside, the victim called 911 and reported that the suspect was still on the property. While on the phone with dispatch he could hear the trunk of the car slam and the car start and saw the vehicle depart without the headlights turned on.

As two Windsor Police Officers arrived on scene they spotted the car leaving. The suspect’s dark colored Volvo sped up and did not yield even after the officers put on their lights and sirens. The suspect went through several stop signs and intersections at speeds of 80 to 90 mph and continued southbound on Starr Road.

Just south of Reiman Lane the roadway makes a 90-degree turn. The suspect was unable to navigate it at his reckless speed and crashed head-on into a large oak tree. The suspect was pinned under the collapsed dashboard of the vehicle and Windsor Fire Department Paramedics had to extricate him from the car.

Messer failed to negotiate the turn ahead in Starr Road – the tree at the end is the one he crashed into.

The suspect was identified as 27-year old Kory Wayne Messer of Santa Rosa. Messer is recently out on bail for a pending felony matter related to driving a stolen vehicle and getting into a pursuit with Santa Rosa PD just six days earlier. He had since produced the $10,000 bail and was then released.

Messer was pulled from the wreckage and taken for treatment.

These most recent incidents add to a long string of arrests, dating back to 2007, according to available records. An October 2007 arrest for an open container and possession of alcohol by someone under 21, along with being under the influence, was followed in April 2008 with resisting arrest, possession of marijuana and being under the influence, and failure to appear in court for the previous infractions. He had four more arrests in the next two years for possession of controlled substance, being under the influence, and DUI.

In September of 2011, records show two arrests, charged with grand theft of lost property, being under the influence and possession of a controlled substance, along with battery and giving false information to a peace officer, and of course probation violations. In September 2012 he was caught running from the Santa Rosa PG&E storage yard, suspected in trying to steal copper wire. He was charged with attempted burglary and grand theft, trespassing, resisting arrest, and violating probation.

Kory Messer in an image from a family member’s Facebook page. It shows him a week ago, resting after being a great help.

When he was pulled from the wreckage in today’s incident, officers found numerous semi-dried marijuana plants in the rear of the Volvo. Messer was arrested for a number of felonies including home invasion robbery, false imprisonment, impersonating a peace officer, recklessly evading a peace officer and causing serious bodily injury, driving with a suspended license and committing a felony while out on bail.

Messer has been hospitalized for treatment of his injuries. Once he is released from medical treatment he will be booked into the Sonoma County Jail. The oak tree was badly bruised but is expected to survive.

Read More:

Press Democrat (2012): Santa Rosa man suspected of burglarizing PG&E yard in search of copper

Lonnie Ray Scott and his wife, Michelle Lynn Havens were out for a ride on his motorcycle last Tuesday night. They were in the north part of Kelseyville, in the flat farmland area heading down Cal Packing Road at 10:15 in the evening on November 4. They hit Finley Road and turned left to go towards Kelseyville, but did not bother to stop at the sign. A patrol deputy in the area witnessed this, and began to follow.

According to Steve Brooks of the Lake County Sheriff’s Department, the deputy observed the pair on the motorcycle, noticing they seemed to have difficulty maintaining balance, and that the driver was not maintaining his normal speed. As Finley Road becomes Big Valley Road, they continued on, and turned left onto Merritt, and once again blew through a stop sign at Merritt and Gunn as they entered the main part of Kelseyville. Having seen them violate at least two stop signs, the deputy turned on the lights to make a traffic stop.

The driver of the bike seemed to take notice finally of the deputy, but instead of pulling over he accelerated, driving through central Kelseyville, ignoring several more stop signs and speeding. Meanwhile, during this pursuit, the deputy witnessed the driver or his passenger throwing things onto the side of the road.

The pair continued through town and got to Highway 29 and continued south. A red light at the Soda Bay Road intersection did not slow them down – they crossed the double yellow lines and headed into the opposite lanes, turning left onto Soda Bay. They continued, now northeast into the Clearlake Riviera area, turning on Point Lakeview Road towards the shore of Clear Lake. After 15 miles and 17 minutes, the chase ended at Marina Drive, a dead end road of homes with a beautiful view of the lake. They were taken into custody, and identified as Lonnie Ray Scott, 43, and Michelle Lynn Havens, 48. Havens identified herself as Scott’s wife.

Marijuana, syringes, a digital scale, and crystal meth were found in the motorcycle.

The reason Scott was so intent on escaping the pursuing deputy became very clear. A search of the motorcycle revealed a duffle bag with 19 pounds of marijuana, a digital scale hypodermic needles and syringes. Scott had on him a large quantity – 7.39 grams – of methamphetamine, along with a meth pipe, a baggie of marijuana, and a needle and syringe.

Havens claimed that she had repeatedly told her husband to stop, and that she was not the one throwing items on the road during the chase. (Deputies searched the area and located several needles and syringes on the roadside.) Though there is no reason to doubt her claim that they were married, it does appear that the two are separated, and that the destination, in spite of the long police chase, appeared to be Havens’ residence on Marina Drive, where the chase concluded. As recently as September, however, when arrested on an outstanding warrant, she claimed the same residence as Scott, on Konocti Road, east of the main town Kelseyville.

Misty Scott, Lonnie’s sister (Facebook)

Scott and Havens made headlines before. According to a story in the Lake County Record Bee, a SWAT team raid on a meth lab resulted in the arrest of Scott and his sister, Misty Scott at a home on Cole Creek Road in rural southern Kelseyville. Two boys, aged 5 and 12, who were the children of Scott and Havens, and a 9-year-old girl, Misty Scott’s daughter, were on the premises during the raid. Lonnie and Misty Scott were charged with manufacturing a controlled substance and child endangerment, and Havens was charged with child endangerment and possession of drug paraphernalia and a syringe.

In this latest incident, Scott was arrested on charges of evading a peace officer, possession of a controlled substance for sale and paraphernalia, being under the influence, and destroying or concealing evidence. Michelle Havens was charged with being under the influence. Both were booked at the Hill Road Correctional Facility.

Read More:

Record Bee (2010): Three plead not guilty to drug charges

SACRAMENTO—A man is facing numerous charges after he allegedly fired a gun near a Sacramento’s Torch Club nightclub in the early hours of Sunday, November 9, and then led police on a short chase.

The shooting happened outside the Torch Club in Downtown Sacramento.

According to the Sacramento Police Department, officers heard gunshots near 15th and I streets in downtown Sacramento around 1:30 a.m. on Sunday.

Police saw Jeremy Wade, 27, get into his car and drive off. Wade drove four blocks on one way 15th Street before crashing his car into a tree near 15^th and L, after trying to turn left onto L going the wrong way. His car came to rest in front of the California Department of Health Services building, and opposite the State Capitol Park and International World Peace Rose Garden.

Wade’s car crashed into a tree and parking meter.

Wade left the car, threw away his loaded handgun and tried to run away before police caught up to him. Police also detained Wade’s passenger.

Back at the scene, police learned two people were grazed by bullets and both are expected to recover.

According to police, the suspect was positively identified as the shooter and booked into Sacramento County Main Jail. Wade faces multiple weapons charges, resisting arrest, evading police, driving under the influence and assault with a deadly weapon.

SAN JOSE – According to the San Jose Police Sergeant Heather Randol, “ On November 4, 2014 at approximately 5:17 P.M., San Jose Police “911″ Communications Center received information about a person shot in an apartment in the 5700 block of Almaden Road in San Jose”. When SJPD patrol officers arrived at the scene, they located an adult male victim suffering from at least one gunshot wound. Randol said, “The victim was pronounced deceased at the scene”. During contact with officers a second victim, a juvenile, was located and was suffering from a gunshot wound, but the bullet had only grazed him. The young man was then able to escape the three suspects who were responsible for the shooting death of 19-year-old Juan Guillen.

The shooting occurred at an apartment building in this neighborhood.

The young juvenile victim was treated for a non-life threatening injury and was released from a local hospital. Randol said, “The San Jose Police Department’s Homicide Unit responded to the scene to conduct an investigation”. They believe that while the suspects were in an empty apartment they began to get into an argument, and one of the suspects pulled out a gun and shot Guillen and intended to kill the second victim. However he was able to escape by running out the door.

The San Jose Covert Response team located and arrested 24-year-old Brandon Brown, who reported his occupation as babysitter, on Friday, November 6. The other suspects, 49-year-old construction worker Jose Quiroz Sr. and 17-year-old Jose Quiroz Jr., were located and arrested on Saturday, November 7.

All three suspects were residents of San Jose. Each suspect has been charged with PC 187 – murder – with a gang enhancement for the shooting death of Guillen. Randol said, “The 17 year old suspect (Jose Jr.) was charged as an adult”.

Persons with information regarding the above case are urged to contact Detective Sgt. Davies or Detective Smith of the San Jose Police Department’s Homicide Unit at (408)277-5283.

Suspect broke into Several Homes

SALINAS—The Salinas Police Department arrested 18-year-old San Jose resident Treyshaun Holmes after he broke into two homes, and then evaded police and ran through a school before he was captured – oh, and lets not forget an indecent exposure incident, He was arrested for that too.

Treyshaun Holmes

On Wednesday, Nov 5, Salinas Police responded to a woman’s call that claimed that a man armed with a knife broke into her home on the 400 block of Belmont Drive. The suspect fled while police were responding. Neither the caller nor her daughter were injured in the incident.

Salinas police had set up a perimeter and begun searching for the suspect when one officer spotted Holmes on the 800 block of Central Avenue. Police readjusted their perimeter but they could not locate the young man.

“After an interview it was determined that Treyshaun Holmes had ducked into a backyard of a resident to hide from police.” Salinas Police Commander Sheldon Bryan wrote. “He discover that the back door was unlocked and entered the house and burglarized it while the victims slept.”

Minutes after that, there were reports of a man walking down Marion Drive with his pants down, exposing himself. The description of the suspect matched that of Holmes. Officers spotted him on the rooftop of a home on Marion Drive.

Washington Middle School was placed on lockdown while Holmes was running.

As police closed in, he jumped from the roof down on to the rear athletic field of Washington Middle School. The School was placed on lockdown as the suspect ran through it onto Clay Street, where he was captured in a backyard of a home.

The lockdown was lifted about fifteen minutes after it began. Holmes still had property from the home on Central Ave in his possession when he was arrested. The victims of that burglary were unaware of it happening, but were able to identify all their property, which was eventually returned to them.

Holmes was booked into the Monterey County Jail on multiple charges that included residential burglary and trespassing.

Ventura - It’s doubtful that in the handbook Getting Away with Burglary, the chapter on evading arrest suggests aquatic escape routes as the best means of avoiding incarceration. Nor would any such helpful guide likely recommend swimming through a putrid, polluted duck pond and then running across eight lanes of high-speed freeway traffic, the excremental avian sludge afoot be damned.

But that’s exactly what Francisco Bonifacio, a 26-year old Ventura resident tried to do on the morning of November 6th. It was just after 8:00 a.m. when, according to the report issued by the Ventura Police Department Watch Commander, the VPD Command Center took a 911 Emergency call from a Vista Del Mar Road resident who had found a bicycle in her driveway. Apparently, the female caller had no use for the bike and wasn’t inclined to simply list it for sale on eBay, and when officers arrived to deal with the pedal-powered unit, they unexpectedly observed Bonifacio suddenly exiting the house.

Bonifacio ignored the cops’ attempts to make verbal contact with him, and sprinted off down a slope toward to the U.S. 101 freeway, suddenly sloshing through “a nearby duck pond” before sprinting onto freeway lanes packed with morning rush hour traffic.

When Bonifacio reached the other side of the freeway, another VPD unit was there waiting for him and took him into custody without further incident. He was ultimately transported to Ventura County Jail and booked on charges of residential brglary, possession of illegal drugs, and resisting arrest.

According to the Watch Commander report, “Bonifacio was not injured as a result of the arrest,” although prior to his booking he was taken to Ventura County Medical Center “for treatment”, presumably not for bird flu.

Photo: Courtesy www.facebook.com

Read more:

EdHat: Residential Burglary Arrest

VCSTAR: Ventura police arrest man who ran across highway

SACRAMENTO—Citrus Heights Police Officers arrested three teenagers in the early morning hours on Wednesday, November 12 after receiving a call that they were breaking into a car.

At approximately 2:00 a.m. on Wednesday, officers responded to the 7300 block of Parkvale Way in Citrus Heights after a witness saw three subjects breaking into her neighbor’s vehicle. While officers were en route to the area, the witness reported that the subjects were walking away from the vehicle.

Officers arrived in the area and began a search. They located the three teens—who are between the ages of 15 and 17 years old—on Blackthorn Way and Tupelo Drive. They were being detained by the witness’s husband in the middle of the street.

The investigation revealed stolen electronics from the victim’s vehicle in the possession of one of the suspects. The other two suspects had property in their possession that also appeared to be stolen from another victim. All three suspects were positively identified by the witness.

The three minors were arrested for possession of stolen property, conspiracy and possession of burglary tools.

Santa Barbara County - Jason Andrew Crisp, 29, and his wide-eyed girlfriend Ricki Lee Warren, 20, may be too young to have been fans of film director Ron Howard’s first behind-the-camera effort “Grand Theft Auto”, but they have apparently bought into the adventurous and chaotic lifestyle portrayed in the movie classic that portrayed vehicular mayhem as mere product of youthful exuberance.

According to California Highway Patrol spokesman Sgt. Don Clotworthy, it was just after dawn on November 11th when a Santa Maria Police Department patrol unit observed “a blue 2007 Dodge Ram pickup truck southbound on U.S. 101” that had previously been reported stolen from a used car lot in Salinas. Clotworthy indicated that during the vehicle theft, “the thieves smashed a lock box, took the keys, and fled in the pickup, crashing through a gate”.

Were the pair emulating the movie Grand Theft Auto?

Shortly after their pursuit of the pickup truck began and the SMPD unit lost sight of it on the freeway, CHP deputies out of the Buellton division picked up the chase with speeds exceeding the legal limit by more than 35mph. “The pickup was using all lanes of traffic,” Clotworthy reported, and racing southbound it “crossed over into northbound lanes” at which point the pursuing CHP unit terminated their pursuit.

Minutes later—just past the treacherous Gaviota Tunnel where any wrong-way vehicle would surely have created a lethal situation—the CHP deputies spotted the pickup truck abandoned in southbound lanes. With their suspects apparently now on foot, units from the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department arrived on scene and established a perimeter. With the arrival of “Aco”, SBSD’s 95-lb K-9, it was only a matter of time before Crisp and Warren were found hiding among rocks on the Gaviota beach. Declining the opportunity to reveal himself voluntarily, Crisp was dragged out onto the beach by the dog, suffering “very minor injuries”. Ouch.

Both suspects were summarily taken into custody and transported to Santa Barbara County Jail. While Warren was apparently working on her pose for headshots should she be cast in the next “Grand Theft” movie (or maybe she’s just afraid of dogs), both she and Crisp were booked on charges of auto theft, possession of stolen property, and felony evading arrest.

Photos: Courtesy Santa Barbara County Jail Booking

Read more:

Noozhawk: Stolen car chase ends in 2 arrests

KCOY: 2 arrested in SB high speed chase

AMADOR COUNTY – Two men from Ohio came out to California to harvest and process marijuana. They were staying in Plymouth, at the Far Horizons 49er RV Resort, a popular tourist destination for the California Gold Country and Amador County wineries.

The men, described as white males, 28 and 48 years old, had been staying at the resort for five days. It is not clear where they accessed the marijuana plants, but the two had built up over 100 pounds of processed pot, which they were likely planning to transport back home to Ohio. It wasn’t all work and no play for the men, however, as they had arranged meetings with prostitutes during their visit using the website Backpage.com.

Backpage looks very much like an alternate version of the more familiar Craigslist. With listings from all over the world, users can select their country and city and find free online classified ads. While Craigslist includes a “Personals” section for men/women seeking men/women, “casual encounters”, “missed connections” and more, Backpage.com features a section that goes further, with ads for escorts, strippers, “dom & fetish” and more.

Lucia Magana Verduzoco – Amador County booking photo and image from Facebook.

Lucia Magana Verduzco, 22 of Sacramento, was one of the women they had hired as an “escort” (legal code name for prostitute). On Monday night, November 10, she was with the men at their RV in Plymouth, having arrived in a black Mercedes Benz. Unknown to her two Ohioan customers, she had also told two of her friends about them, no doubt describing the voluminous quantity of pot stored at their RV.

Those two men may have thought this would be easy pickings. They already knew the layout of the victims’ place, and armed with at least one gun, they likely planned to make off with as much marijuana as they could fit in their car, and perhaps some cash as well. They had followed Verduzco in a white sedan.

The operation, however, did not go off as planned. When faced with the robbery, the two men fought back. During the melee, shots were fired, hitting the younger man at least once in the face, while the older man was hit with a blunt force object in the head. The two robbers quickly left in the white car, and Verduzco followed in the Mercedes. Meanwhile, hearing shots on the premises, several people called 911. One called reported seeing a victim shot and multiple men leaving in the two cars. The two suspects were reportedly wearing hooded sweatshirts and white masks.

According to a press release, the Amador County Sheriff’s office received the emergency calls, and dispatched deputies to the scene. Officers from the Highway Patrol, Sutter Creek PD and Jackson PD also responded to assist. Plymouth Fire and American Legion Ambulance also responded to provide medical aid to the victims.

Drytown, a small community with Antique shops and restaurants. Verduzoco was captured just south of here.

The two fugitive cars had fled south on Highway 49, and the Mercedes was stopped just past Drytown, the small roadside community just prior to Amador City and Sutter Creek. Lucia Verduzco was arrested there by a deputy and the Sutter Creek officer. They also located evidence apparently discarded from one of the cars on the side of the road. Sheriff’s detectives and a crime scene technician responded to process that evidence.

The two armed robbers were not found, however, and remain at large. It is not clear if they escaped with any of the marijuana or other property from the crime scene. The 28-year-old victim who was shot in the face is in critical condition after being transported to the UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento via emergency helicopter. The other victim was treated at Sutter Amador Hospital and released.

Lucia Verduzco was charged with conspiracy to commit robbery and attempted murder. This is not the first serious charge she has faced, however. In November of last year she was arrested for embezzlement and grand theft auto by the Mojave CHP in Southern California. But was she led into this by the men who committed the robbery? She posted a message on her Facebook page just last month, which reads (edited for content): “I try to make s*** work but n****s always try to bring me down. i wash my handS and I’m done with the lying, cheating, ect. I CAN’T stand a n**** that want to pull his own b**** down I’m a grown a** woman and i don’t need nun of it.”

The investigation into this incident continues, as detectives are processing evidence, interviewing witnesses, and viewing surveillance video. The two victims will themselves likely face charges for possession and possession for sale of marijuana, processing marijuana and perhaps cultivation.

Anyone who has any information about this case is encouraged to call the Sheriff’s office as 209-223-6500, or Amador County Secret Witness at 209-223-4900.

INGLEWOOD, CA—She had so many charges that it was no surprise that she even netted a brand new one.

Shamica Purry, 37, was arrested by Inglewood police on Saturday, November 8 at approximately 9 p.m. on the 3100 block of West Century Boulevard in Inglewood. The 5’2”, 135-lb. Los Angeles resident may be one of the first of those charged with a brand new crime: 459.5PC.

Proposition 47 was voted in during the November 4 general election. It introduced 11 new charge codes that demoted former felonies into misdemeanors. The newly minted charge, 459.5PC, is the misdemeanor crime of shoplifting whereby the value of the goods stolen is less than $950. It went into effect immediately on November 5.

Purry was charged with possession of a controlled substance (11377(A)HS), possession of drug paraphernalia (11364(A)HS), petty theft of personal property under $400 (484(A)PC), forgery (470(B)PC, possession of a blank check with the intent to commit forgery (475(B)PC), possession of a complete check with intent to defraud (475APC), forgery (470(A)PC), receiving known stolen goods (496(A)PC), bringing alcohol/drugs/etc. into prison (4573.5PC), possession of a complete check with intent to commit forgery (475(C)PC) and the new misdemeanor introduced by Prop 47: entering a commercial structure with the intent to steal property valued below $950 (459.5PC).

She also had four warrants. Three were from the LAPD for failure to appear with the written promise to do so (40508(A)VC) and one from Inglewood PD for possession of a forged driver’s license (470BPC).

Total bail was set at $186,807.

Purry was not available to answer if she had any plans to try and add the other 10 new charges when—or if—she is released.

INGLEWOOD, CA—When the proponents of the recently voter-approved Proposition 47 petitioned the voters of California, the aspects of prior robberies, theft of firearms and shoplifting items up to $950 in value being downgraded from felonies to misdemeanors was not mentioned.

Keoke Neal, 20, and Leroy Cunningham, 38, are two new winners who would have been charged with felony shoplifting charges had they elected to act prior to November 5. Fortunately for the Los Angeles residents, they were arrested on November 11 at approximately 12:15 p.m. by Inglewood police on the 2800 block of Imperial Highway.

Prop 47 was voted in during the November 4 general election. Under it, 11 former felonies were made into misdemeanors. Criminal code 459.5PC was among the new codes.

Neal was charged with shoplifting not to exceed $950 in value (459.5PC) and conspiracy to commit a crime (182(A)(1)PC.

Cunningham was charged with shoplifting not to exceed $950 in value (459.5PC), conspiracy to commit a crime (182(A)(1)PC and driving without a license (12500(A)VC).

Bail for Neal was set at $2,000. Bail for Cunningham was set at $22,000; the $20,000 charge was for the lack of a driver’s license.

They’ll both now know to keep their driver’s licenses valid but to not worry about shoplifting so long as the stuff stolen doesn’t exceed $950 in value.

SONOMA COUNTY – Maybe if he had just quit while he was ahead, he would have gotten off lightly, especially in the wake of California’s new proposition 47 rules. He might have walked away with a simple misdemeanor, but perhaps because he was on probation, Michael Sean Phillips made a run for it and ended up in hot water.

It was Monday morning, November 10, and Phillips, 45, was away from his home in central Santa Rosa, a modest house on 8th Street. He had come north in his black Toyota sedan to the Fulton area, a more rural neighborhood where homes on large lots are nestled amid Sonoma’s famous vineyards. He was up to no good at a house on Woolsey Street.

According to Sgt. Cecile Focha of the Sonoma Sheriff’s Office, at 10:12 am, a woman at the house heard glass breaking in the back of her home, and called 911. She then encountered Phillips and yelled – or perhaps screamed – at him. He fled the house immediately, before responding deputies could arrive.

While one team responded to the house to interview the victim, other deputies spread out in the area to look for the black Toyota the woman at the home had seen Phillips drive away in. He was not spotted immediately, but after about half an hour, a deputy spotted the black car about a mile west of the scene, traveling north on Mark West Station Road. He initiated a traffic stop on the car, and had Phillips simply pulled over, he would have been likely charged with misdemeanor burglary, probation violation, and perhaps misdemeanor vandalism for the broken window. But instead, he hit the gas.

Now in a vehicle pursuit, other units joined in to try to stop him. California Highway Patrol and nearby Windsor, Healdsburg, and Cloverdale police units were all enlisted to help. Traveling through country roads and eventually across the Russian River, Phillips was passing vehicles, driving on the wrong side, and even encountered a construction site with a traffic control flagger, and bicyclists on the roads. The pursuing deputy laid off the pursuit out of concern for the safety of the cyclists and other motorists.

Westside Road runs through vineyards in rural Sonoma. This springtime image from Google Maps shows bare vines, but they are much fuller and easier to hide in during fall.

However, still in distant pursuit, the deputy was aided by a bystander who pointed towards a vineyard along Westside Road. The deputy followed and found Phillips’ car, which had just crashed into a Sonoma County Fire truck. The car was more damaged than the truck, but Phillips had already left. The Fireman was there, however, and pointed to where he had run.

The vineyard, however, was full of foliage and Phillips was not easy to spot. Additional responding units proceeded to set up a perimeter in the area, and a law enforcement K9 unit was deployed. The dog quickly discovered the fugitive’s direction of travel, and a deputy on the perimeter soon saw Phillips. Perhaps seeing the dog was after him as well, Phillips gave himself up without any further trouble.

Phillips was initially arrested for evading arrest with wanton disregard for safety, hit and run, probation violations, and possession of a controlled substance; bail was set at $30,000. The Sheriff’s property crimes detectives are still working the case and will determine additional charges related to the burglary that started the whole adventure. Anyone with any information to contribute should call the Tip Line at 707-565-2185.

The Paso Robles Police Department Special Enforcement Team (SET) detectives cited four people possession of marijuana at an operation staged at Centennial Park last week.

According to PRPD, the department had received multiple complaints regarding individuals who would use the park to smoke marijuana. Complainants told police the illegal activity became very disruptive for those who wished to use the park for its recreational value.

SET members dressed in plain clothes and walked through the park in the afternoon hours and observed several individuals openly smoking marijuana. During the operation, detectives made 15 contacts that resulted in five suspects being detained and/or cited for marijuana related violations.

Police cited three adults and one juvenile were cited for possession of marijuana. Another female juvenile was under the influence of marijuana, but was turned over to a parent at the scene. All violations were treated as infractions and no arrests were made.