Los Angeles – After receiving numerous complaints concerning unlawful activity going on near the corner of Imperial Avenue and Vermont Avenue, the South LA Station of the sheriff’s department conducted what they called a “john sting” on Thursday January 29.

Police display approximately $8,000 apparently seized during their sting

The operation began at 3:00 p.m. and ended at 10:00 p.m.  28 members comprised the task force and several female deputies worked undercover as supposed prostitutes.  In the course of their ruse, 4 male adults were arrested for misdemeanor solicitation of prostitution. In addition, one male adult was arrested for felony pandering.

Law enforcement reminds you that if you wish to contact them concerning suspicious or criminal activity, call 800-222-TIPS or text the letters TIPLA to CRIMES (274637).

A scene from the sting in progress

Photos courtesy LASD Information Bureau

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VISALIA – Police have arrested the suspect believed to be responsible for setting off a chemical explosive device at Marshalls and robbing the store last week.

Around 6:21 p.m. last Tuesday, police and the Visalia Fire Department’s hazardous materials unit responded to a call from someone at Marshalls who said that there had been an explosion at the store.

Police learned that someone had put a green soda bottle with an unknown substance inside a purse that was for sale. A chemical reaction inside the bottle caused the bottle cap to blow off, which made a loud bang.

A man was seen running out of the store through an emergency exit carrying a bag of stolen clothes. Police say they believe the explosion was a diversionary tactic to distract from the robbery.

The next day, an officer pulled over a car as part of a routine traffic stop. The driver, now identified as 40-year-old Larry Mock, sped away after giving his license to the officer. Police chased him and found the car abandoned on West Reese Street.

The car matched the description of a car seen leaving Marshalls. Police found the stolen merchandise inside the car, as well as two more bottles containing the unknown explosive.

Police were able to track down Mock to a Tulare hotel on Thursday and arrest him. He is being held in jail on suspicion of robbery, conspiracy, possession of materials with intent to make explosives, explosion with intent to injure or intimidate, and evading police.

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FRESNO – The men responsible for the death of a 9-year-old girl killed in a gang shootout in January were arrested.

Janessa Rodriguez was killed by a stray bullet on January 18 as she and her mother, Stacey Gonzales, were talking to friends in front of a laundromat at Marks and Clinton Avenues in Fresno.

Two gang members, now identified as Brian Cooks, 22, and Isaac Stafford, 19, shot at each other from nearly 300 yards away in an attempt to settle a feud based on a shooting that took place in 2012.

According to police, an associate of Cooks, identified as Deondre Robinson, was sent to prison for a shooting at Ashlan Avenue and Parkway Drive in 2012. Stafford was one of the witnesses who helped send Robinson to prison, and Stafford’s name was posted on social media as a snitch, police said.

The gunfight that ended Janessa’s life began around 8:40 p.m. on January 18 when Cooks, armed with a handgun and riding a skateboard, crossed paths with Stafford, who was headed southbound in a Dodge Challenger with another occupant, Police Chief Jerry Dyer said.

Someone in the Challenger shot four rounds and hit a car that Cooks had crouched behind. Cooks fired one round before his gun jammed. Unfortunately, that bullet hit Janessa in the stomach. She was taken to the hospital, where she died a short time later, Dyer said.

No one else was hurt in the incident.

“We are very fortunate because with the close proximity of the individuals next to Janessa, we could have had other people shot as well,” Dyer said.

After nearly two weeks and 1,600 hours spent trying to solve the crime, police were able to identify and arrest Cooks and Stafford on murder charges.

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Santa Rosa – A man who used stolen credit cards at multiple locations was arrested last Thursday for that and drug sales, firearms, and stolen property. When he was arrested, a woman with him was also charged with drug offenses.

It began last month, on Wednesday, January 7. A woman had gone to Bellevue Elementary in southwest Santa Rosa to do volunteer work at the school. While she was in working with the kids, someone broke into her car and stole her purse. She called to cancel all her cards as quickly as she could, according to the Sonoma County Sheriff’s department, and was told that someone had already been busy using them. The banks listed Safeway, Walmart, and the Graton Casino as some of the locations her cards had already shown up. She then filed a report with the Sheriff’s office.

Santa Rosa’s Bellevue Elementary School

Sheriff’s detectives assigned to her case contacted the locations where her cards were known to have been used. Several of them were able to provide surveillance video of the person who had presented the cards, and deputies were able to match the man in the picture with a known person, 36-year-old Shane Paul Titman.

Shane Titman had been arrested by the Santa Rosa police on October 30 of last year on charges of robbery and felony possession of a controlled substance. He was picked up at or near a home on the corner of Rutledge & Ware in Santa Rosa, according to a Santa Rosa police report. Older reports show arrests in the summer of 2005 for burglary, issuing a false check, driving under the influence and with a suspended license, and possession of a controlled substance and paraphernalia.

Once Titman had been identified as a suspect, Sheriff’s Property Crimes detectives obtained a warrant for his arrest, which was issued on Wednesday, January 28. He was wanted for burglary, identity theft, and credit card fraud. The next day a deputy spotted Titman driving a white Chevrolet Avalanche pickup near the Coddington Mall and Santa Rosa Junior College in north Santa Rosa. The deputy stopped the vehicle, positively identified the driver as Titman, and arrested him on the outstanding warrant. Detectives were notified, and an additional search warrant was requested for Titman’s residence and vehicle.

But Titman was not alone in the Avalanche when he was pulled over. Deputies spoke to the woman he was with, 34-year-old Dayna Marie Grimwood of Rohnert Park. Ms. Grimwood was found to be on probation, and was in possession of methamphetamine. She was arrested for violating probation and possession of a controlled substance. She was later booked at the Sonoma County Jail, with bail set at $4,500.00. Her first court appearance was scheduled for today, February 2.

Meanwhile, detectives served the search warrant at Titman’s Santa Rosa residence. They found several items that were reportedly purchased using the stolen credit card, including a baby rocking chair and a fishing pole, likely from Walmart. They also found a violin reported stolen from a car in Guerneville on New Year’s Eve. Guerneville is a small town in the hills west of Santa Rosa, just past Forestville, one of Titman’s reported residences.

The search of Titman’s home also revealed over 20 pounds of processed marijuana, along with a scale and packaging material, indicating he was in the business of selling marijuana. They also found a gun on the premises.

Titman was booked at the Sonoma County Jail on charges of burglary, identify theft, credit card fraud, possession of stolen property, marijuana for sale, and a firearm, which he is not allowed to have as a convicted felon. His bail was set at $60,000.00, which he reportedly posted. He’s due in court tomorrow, February 3 at 8:30 am.

A hit-and-run driver who allegedly ignored the pleas of his injured victim to call 911 for assistance has been captured.

The injury collision happened at the corner of Chiles Road and La Vida

Brian Douglas Cassidy, 58, who had frustrated authorities’ efforts to track him down for two weeks, is suspected of fleeing the scene of a crash near the intersection of Chiles Road and La Vida Way in South Davis on December 17. Before fleeing, Cassidy told Nikolas Kostelny, the injured victim, “Stop yelling at me. … I ain’t calling s—.” The injured motorcyclist remembered Cassidy’s callousness in an interview with the Davis Enterprise a week after the collision.

Kostelny seriously injured his arm in the crash; he was in the hospital for three weeks and forced to take a year off from his job as a roofer.

Davis police Sgt. Rod Rifredi, whose efforts led to the arrest of Cassidy, resorted to low-tech detection techniques to crack the case; beginning with the crash site, Rifredi drove in all possible directions the hit-and-run driver could have taken to flee. Eventually, Rifredi turned into the Rancho Yolo Trailer Park, a senior citizen community, where he discovered Cassidy’s damaged Jeep Patriot parked outside his trailer on Outer Circle. Rifredi deduced the damage could logically have occurred in the crash.

A neighbor in Rancho Yolo spotted Cassidy and alerted police.

“It was definitely the car,” said Rifredi, who seized the vehicle. Further investigation revealed there was evidence left at the collision scene that matched Cassidy’s vehicle, and he found further associative proof inside the Jeep. Rifredi declined to reveal the nature of this evidence.

For another week, Davis police officers’ efforts to contact Cassidy failed. Either he was not at home or did not answer knocks at this door. Finally, on January 29, a tipster in the trailer park informed DPD that Cassidy had just entered his trailer. Upon their arrival, officers arrested Cassidy.

He is currently being held at Yolo County Jail on $105,000 bond. Rifredi said Cassidy has had prior drunken-driving convictions in Contra Costa County.

BAKERSFIELD — A 25-year-old Bakersfield man was arrested for a hit and run accident that occurred early Sunday morning and resulted in one death.

Joselito Meza was booked into the Kern County Jail for a hit and run causing injury, DUI causing injury, DUI causing injury or death and gross vehicular manslaughter.

At 2:40 a.m, February 1, the Kern County Sheriff’s Office came upon a highly intoxicated Meza, who told officers he had been carjacked and that his vehicle was stolen.

Officers quickly located the vehicle and discovered it had damage consistent with being involved in a collision involving a pedestrian.
An hour later, a citizen contacted police, reporting that she saw what appeared to be a person sleeping in the center median of the 3300 block of Buena Vista Road.

Officers arrived on scene and discovered 22-year-old Miguel Angel Aldaco dead. Officers found evidence linking Meza’s vehicle to the scene of the hit and run, as well as information asserting that he and the victim were together earlier that night. There is no indication that a carjacking ever occurred.

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24-year-old Jorge Nogueda faces charges under PC 466 (a), misdemeanor possession of burglary tools, and VC 10851(a), felony car theft. A notice of bail forfeiture by the Seaview Insurance Company, also known as Aladdin Bail Bonds, was requested on Jan 21, in which a 10 percent amount of $1,500 was requested due to failure of the suspect to appear for court. The original bail amount was set at $15,000.

According to police records, on Jan 2, 2015, the San Jose Police Department received a call from a female victim reporting that her 1996 dark blue Honda Civic had been stolen near Jose Figueres Avenue in San Jose. In a follow up on possible stolen cars in the area, San Jose patrol officers noticed a vehicle matching the description, with two people sitting inside while it was parked.

Once the vehicle was identified as stolen, the SJPD officer pulled behind the Honda and approached the passenger side, holding both suspects at gun point until other responding units were able to arrive and take the suspects into custody. In questioning the suspects, it was learned that Nogueda had stolen the vehicle. The reporting officer was also able to locate a shaved instrument (key) used to start the ignition.

According to records 20-year-old Anahi Lopez who was in the vehicle with Nogueda said she was at home when she “received a phone call from her boyfriend.” She explained that she had walked out to meet him and saw him standing next to the stolen vehicle. Lopez said that she did not know that the vehicle was stolen and that is why she was seated in the front passenger seat, thinking that the car belonged to him.

Suspect Nogueda admitted to officers that he was the one that had stolen the vehicle and that Lopez did not know. Nogueda said he was smoking marijuana when he saw the parked car. Revealing that he did not want to walk and wanted to drive, Nogueda “popped” open the car door and then used a shaved key to start the vehicle.

The next court date had been scheduled for Jan 20, 2015. However the defendant was not present and is currently evading bail.

Nogueda has had several past arrests, including last July when he was charged with possession of a controlled substance and probation violations. Prior to that, in 2011 when he was 19, he was charged with possession of a dangerous weapon, and later with possession of narcotic controlled substances. In 2013 records show an arrest for carrying a concealed dirk or dagger, and resisting or obstructing an officer, along with probation violations.

Reyes and Valencia were spotted in a stolen car near the intersection of Madden and Alexander.

Another area car theft occurred on July 30 of 2014 in which the suspect, 20-year-old Freddy Reyes, had stolen a vehicle, and while officers were parked near Madden and Alexander they watched as Reyes failed to stop at the intersection and ran a red light. The officers watched as he lost control and crashed into a parked car. SJPD Officers using a unmarked (stop equipped) vehicle pulled in behind Reyes, only to have him back up into the car, and then drive forward fleeing the scene. It was determined that Reyes had stolen the 1998 Silver Acura out of nearby Milpitas.

The vehicle was located a short time later by the Milpitas PD. Both suspects had run from the vehicle, but were identified by the officer, who had a good look at the driver during the car chase that had led officers onto I-680 and then exiting in Milpitas.

Reyes is facing charges under PC 245 (a), VC 10851 (A), and PC 148 (A) (1), felony hit and run, car theft, and resisting arrest. He had been arrested just prior to that incident, on July 4 by the Redwood City CHP for vehicle theft, possession of burglars tools and stolen property, and concentrated cannabis.

The other suspect, 19-year-old Fernando Valencia is also suspected of being a street gang member, and it is believed they both had been involved in the car theft. He was charged with vehicle theft, resisting arrest, possession of drug paraphernalia, and parole violations. He had been arrested in January on a warrant for felony battery with serious bodily injury.

When interviewed by the arresting officers, Reyes refused to answer questions when confronted about the accident and stolen vehicle, just saying he didn’t know what was happening . Officers asked if he saw the car behind him. Reyes said, “When I heard the lights ya know, some noise of a cop.” The next court date has been scheduled on May 26, 2015 for sentencing in Dept 30 at 9:00 AM in front of the Honorable Deborah Ryan.

Ventura County – The upscale cities of Thousand Oaks and Westlake Village are prime markets for the “ride share” operations now sweeping the nation and competing head-to-head with local, licensed taxicab companies. The current leader in this service offering, Uber, has become a favorite of smartphone users who can summon a ride in a privately-owned vehicle at very short notice.

What those Uber customers can’t count on, however, is the driving skill of their amateur chauffeurs; it was this element of risk that proved problematic on January 28th when the car Cody Jens, 24, and Luke Karasiuk, 22, were riding in late that morning was pulled over in a routine traffic stop pursuant to a vehicle code violation observed by a passing Thousand Oaks Police patrol unit.

According to TOPD spokesman Cpt. Jim Fryoff, Jens and Karasiuk were in the rear seat of a car being used at the time for Uber services, and “were found to be in possession of approximately one quarter pound of concentrated cannabis” as well as cash in the amount of $2000. A field investigation immediately ensued in which it was determined that the two young men were using Uber to drive them to various locations for the purposes of selling and distributing their “honey oil,” as concentrated cannabis extract is referred to in street parlance. Fryoff reported that the two young men had “well over a thousand dosage units of the product” with them in the backseat of the Uber vehicle.

With their Uber ride at an end, both Jens and Karasiuk were given a cost-free ride at the behest of arresting officers and were transported to Ventura County Jail where they were booked on charges of possession of a controlled substance for sale.

The Uber driver was not a suspect in any crime other than driving poorly, and will presumably be a bit more careful about which passengers he picks up.

Photos: Courtesy Ventura County Jail booking

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COVINA – 19-year-old Louis Vasquez had just been released from jail on Saturday morning, serving time for a felony offense.  Before the night was over, he was back in jail for a crime that was apparently as random as it was vicious.

At 7:30 on Saturday night an 18-year-old worker at was bringing in shopping carts at Smart and Final when a Latino man, unknown to the victim and later identified as Vasquez, stabbed him in the right shoulder and called him a racial slur.

Surveillance photo of Vasquez assaulting one of his victims

Vasquez then proceeded next door to CVS and chased down a 24-year-old customer, stabbing him twice in the right shoulder as well, and then slashed him several more times before the victim kicked the knife away and staggered back to the store.  The second incident was captured on the store’s surveillance camera.

Vasquez fled into a nearby neighborhood and was soon apprehended and arrested in the 800 block of W. Edna Place.

Both attacks appear to be racially motivated based on the criminal’s behavior and alleged statements during the attacks.  The charges against Vasquez include attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon.

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The Davis driver accused of fleeing the scene of an accident, in which he struck a motorcycle rider and then refused the seriously injured victim’s pleas to call an ambulance, pleaded not guilty at his arraignment February 2.

Brian Douglas Cassidy, 58, faces charges of DUI causing injury, hit-and-run, and driving on a suspended license. The charges all are associated with the December 17 collision on Cowell Boulevard in South Davis which splintered Nikolas Kostelny’s right arm.

Cassidy informed Judge Stephen Mock that he could not afford an attorney; Mock assigned the Yolo County Public Defender’s Office to represent him for the time being, until auditors assess Cassidy’s personal finances and determine if he qualifies for the free legal assistance. Meanwhile, Deputy Public Defender David Muller sought to have Cassidy’s bail reduced from $105,000 to release on his own recognizance. Muller noted Cassidy’s lack of any prior felony convictions and his “struggle with bipolor disorder, for which he ‘self-medicates’ with alcohol,” according to a Davis Enterprise report.

“I think Mr. Cassidy would be a good candidate for supervised release,” Muller told Mock, pledging that Cassidy would attend Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and wear a GPS device so that probation officers could track his movements.

Deputy District Attorney Matt De Moura disagreed, saying Cassidy not only posed a flight risk but, if released from jail, could threaten the public’s safety. Though unspoken at the arraignment, no doubt Cassidy’s comments to Kostelny at the crash site–“Stop yelling at me.…I ain’t calling s—.”–were a factor in the debate at to his fitness for release.

DeMoura also pointed out to Judge Mock that Cassidy is relatively new to Davis and has no significant ties to the community. “He has no reason to stay here,” he said. Then Mock denied the requested release and added $50,000 to Cassidy’s bail amount.

Cassidy will next appear in Judge David Reed’s court on February 17.

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Chief O’Connor Guides Police to Suspect

HOLLISTER—The Hollister Police Department arrested an under-age DUI suspect after he collided with a parked car on South Street in Hollister on Sunday Night. Arrested for driving under the influence and hit and run was 20-year-old Hollister resident Mauro Merino.

Sunday, February 1 at 9:50 pm, Police were dispatched to a hit and run collision that had occurred on South Street. Witnesses stated that the car had collided with a parked car.

South Street in Hollister

Hollister Fire Chief Mike O’Conner, who was responding to the accident, saw the suspected vehicle driving down Monterey Street. He notified responding officers that he was following a vehicle that had corresponding damage to that of the car involved in the accident. He guided Officers to Washington Street where the suspect parked the car and fled on foot.

Hollister Police set up a perimeter around the area and the suspect was eventually found hiding in a garage on Grubb Alley. The suspect was identified as Mauro Merino.

Merino displayed symptoms of intoxication. He was transported to Hazel Hopkins Hospital for medical clearance. After receiving clearance, Hollister Police transported Merino to San Benito County Jail where he was booked on charges of suspicion of driving under the influence and hit and run.

Mauro Merino-De Jesus had been arrested in April of last year on charges of driving without a valid license and under the influence of alcohol.

The Hollister Police would like to thank Fire Chief O’Conner for his diligence and assistance in the apprehension of the DUI suspect. They are asking that anyone having information about this incident to call the Hollister Police at 831-636-4330.

Ventura County – Nestled in the foothills just east of the City of Ventura, the Ojai Valley is widely known as a tranquil retreat from the usual hurly-burly of contemporary life, and enjoys a long-standing reputation as a center for spiritual connection and meditation.

Ironically, however, the Ojai Valley has recently been the scene of multiple incidents involving mysterious pyrotechnic and explosive events which have become the focus of intense law enforcement interest since the summer months of 2014. With that background, it was with all due alacrity in the early evening hours of January 27th that Ventura County Fire Department units and Ventura County Sheriff’s Department Ojai station deputies were dispatched to a quiet residential Meiner’s Oaks neighborhood pursuant to “numerous calls of loud explosions in the area,” according to VCSD spokesman Sgt. R. Harwood.

When fire and law enforcement units arrived at the reported scene in the vicinity of North LaLuna Avenue, deputies were informed by reporting parties that a specific street address seemed to be the location from which the sounds of explosions had emanated. “Unable to locate the person who was responsible for the explosions,” Harwood reported, detectives conducting follow-up investigation determined that Travis Ross, a 24-year old resident at the location, “had been building and detonating small bombs” with various chemical compounds which he packaged and then ignited to considerable concussive effect.

Detectives subsequently made contact with Ross, whom they suspect may have been involved in the several prior incidents over the preceding six months. Those events remain under investigation, while Ross was arrested at the scene of the current incident and was summarily transported to Ventura County Jail where he was booked on charges of making and detonating an explosive device, charges that merited his bail being set at $100,000.

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APPLE VALLEY – San Bernardino County Sheriff’s deputies shot and killed a former California Highway Patrol officer on Monday after he was firing on ground patrol units and at a helicopter.

Frances Murphy Rose III, 42, of Apple Valley was killed by deputies’ return fire in a February 2 incident that drew a response after initial reports of shots being fired early Monday night in the 9000 block of Buena Vista, located in an unincorporated section of Apple Valley.

While Detective Patty Ruiz and Sergeant John Gaffney, both of the Sheriff’s Homicide Division, are continuing the investigation, early reports drew the quick response of sheriff’s deputies, including the sheriff’s desert helicopter division.

Having been dispatched to the residence, which is known as Juniper Flats, Rose began firing at deputies in the helicopter and ground patrol units, according to reports. Deputies on the ground returned fire, according to reports, “and the suspect was struck.”

Paramedic personnel responding to the location pronounced Rose dead at the scene. According to sheriff’s deputies reports, Rose worked for the CHP between 2009 and 2013. Reports stated that Rose graduated from the CHP academy in 2009.

Rose had been assigned to the Barstow station, located less than an hour from the shooting site.

Nearby residents and responding deputies were not injured during the incident. There was no report on how many rounds of gunfire had been discharged. Investigators also did not disclose why Rose began firing shots.

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Santa Barbara – UCSB—with a recent history of mob violence, rampaging mass-shootings, residential burglaries, sexual assaults, illicit drug sales, and general mayhem both on and off campus—continues to be a hotbed of law enforcement interest and administrative upheaval with the recently announced retirement of the school’s chancellor and a radically heightened police presence as demonstrated by the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Isla Vista Foot Patrol’s increased staffing and installation of hundreds of surveillance cameras throughout the community.

All that said, the violence appears to continue unabated as evidenced by the January 24th arrest of Kevin Ruiz, 18, pursuant to a multi-party street fight observed by a University of California Police Department patrol lieutenant just steps away from the UCSB campus. According to Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department Public Information Officer Kelly Hoover, the UCPD officer spotted “four subjects who were covered in blood” fighting in front of the Sigma Chi Omega fraternity house. When the officer made his presence known, the four bloody guys attempted to flee the scene but were summarily detained by SBSD deputies arriving as backup.

Immediately conducting a field investigation, a 21-year old UCSB student was found inside the fraternity house suffering from multiple stab wounds to his chest and head. While he was promptly transported to Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital for immediate medical attention, deputies soon determined that Ruiz—one of those four detained at the outset and discovered to be suffering from minor wounds on his hands himself—was the party responsible for the victim’s wounds. Ruiz was arrested on the scene and transported to Santa Barbara County Jail where he was booked on charges of assault with a deadly weapon, with his bail set at $30,000.

Photo: Courtesy Santa Barbara County Jail Booking

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The man whom Fairfield police were informed had bit a woman’s wrist now faces felony charges.

Braden Alexander Harrison, 36, is going to be arraigned on February 18th in Solano County Superior Court. At a February 2nd hearing Solano County Judge Peter Foor ruled Harrision must be held to answer for the January 10th assault as well as another related event.

Fairfield Police Officer Ryan Burger testified at the preliminary hearing in Judge Foor’s courtroom on Monday that, on January 10th, he had occasion to speak with a woman being treated at NorthBay Medical Center in Fairfield regarding bites Harrison had allegedly inflicted on her. She told Burger she had walked to the hospital after first trying to ride her bicycle there. She was forced to dismount and walk because of the extreme pain she was in, according to the officer’s testimony. She had tried to leave Harrison as the two sheltered in the parking lot of a church near Peach Tree Drive.

Burger said he saw broken skin on her wrist.

This woman also told Burger that Harrison had, several days prior to the biting incident, kicked her several times in her abdomen. Burger testified he learned the woman was a part-time transient; she lived with her mother in Fairfield the rest of the time. In the pre-biting incident, the woman told Burger she was minding her own business, just taking out the garbage at the mother’s house. At that time, Harrison “sneaked up on her,” according to a Fairfield Daily Republic report. Harrison grabbed her hair from behind, dragged her some distance and, at that point, started the kicking.

Records show that Harrison had been arrested by police in Concord, in the East Bay Area, for disorderly conduct – loitering or prowling on private property – at 12:30 am the day after Christmas. Prior to that, on October 27, he was arrested for burglary by Fairfield police at an apartment building on North Texas across from Walmart.

Victim Was Forced To Drive Out Of Town

SALINAS—Salinas Police arrested two carjackers after they forced a man to drive out of town and relieved him of his vehicle on Monday morning, January 26.  They were identified as 25-year-old Juan Rivera and 19-year-old Ruben Martinez.

On Monday, at 3:15 in the morning, Police were called about a carjacking that had occurred on East Market Street and Pearl Avenue. The victim told police two suspects carjacked him by gunpoint. He went on to say that the two men got into his car and forced him to drive to an unincorporated area just outside of Salinas. Once there, the suspects let him out of the vehicle and drove away.

After police put out a ‘Be on the Lookout’ (BOL) bulletin, an alert officer spotted the stolen vehicle parked in the 700 block of Elton Place, at Rivera’s residence. The Officer parked his vehicle nearby and began to watch the vehicle.

Soon, the officer noticed two young men approach and enter the vehicle, and then drive away. The driver, Rivera, noticed that police were following him, so he immediately parked the vehicle and fled on foot, while holding a handgun.

Rivera tried to hide in a shed right around the corner on Filice Street, but he was soon found.

Martinez, who was the passenger, stayed behind in the vehicle and was detained. Police began to search for Rivera in the area. They eventually found him hiding in a shed in the 100 block of North Filice Street, right around the corner from his Elton Place home.

Rivera had discarded the handgun, which was recovered. Police also found a small amount of narcotics and stolen property in the vehicle.

Police were also able to determine that the two were also suspects in another carjacking that happened the night before. Both Rivera and Martinez were transported and lodged into Monterey County Jail.

Both suspects had a history of vehicle thefts prior to these incidents. Records show that Rivera had been arrested in December of 2014 for vehicle theft, driving without a license, and probation violations. Martinez was arrested several times in 2014 for vehicle theft, possession of burglary tools, and possession of controlled substances and paraphernalia.

In Either Case the Handguns Were Not Registered

WATSONVILLE—Members of the Santa Cruz County Anti-Crime Gang Task Force arrested 18-year-old Watsonville resident Saul Castillo-Arana after a search of his residence produced an unregistered handgun.

Members of the Task Force were on routine patrol near Bree Lane in Watsonville. They contacted Arana, a known gang participant, at his apartment on the 300 block of Bree Lane. Arana is a convicted felon on active probation and is subjected to searches while on probation.  He had been arrested on October 4 for possession of concentrated cannabis and failure to obey an officer. His prior offenses as a juvenile are not available.  GTF agents searched his home and found a loaded handgun in his bedroom.

Since Arana is a felon on probation he is also restricted from possessing a firearm pursuant to his terms of probation. The gun had a serial number, but it was not registered.

Saul Castillo Arana was arrested by the Gang Task Force Members on charges of being in possession of a loaded firearm as a convicted felon, possession of ammunition by a convicted felon, and for violating his probation. Arana was booked into the Santa Cruz County Jail on January 8.

Omar Diaz, and the weapon found in his possession.

On January 29, The Santa Cruz Anti-Crime Team was at it again as they arrested 39-year-old Omar Diaz for being in possession of a loaded .38 caliber handgun.  Additionally, Diaz had three warrants for his arrest for assault for a deadly weapon and domestic battery.

Diaz also had additional ammunition in a loaded magazine in his pants pocket. Diaz was booked in the Santa Cruz County Jail for possession of a loaded firearm and providing false information to a peace officer.

This marks the third handgun seized in 2015. The Gang task Force seized 26 firearms in 2014 and 78 firearms since 2012.

FOLSOM—An inmate found with stab wounds in his cell at Folsom Prison on February 2, 2015 has died, and another inmate was identified as a suspect in the death.

Inmate Roberto Baldizon, 35, was discovered at 9:55 a.m. Tuesday in his cell in the maximum security housing at California State Prison, Sacramento in Folsom. He had multiple stab wounds and was pronounced dead at 10:27 a.m., according to a California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation news release.

Officials said staff members found an inmate-manufactured weapon at the scene. Investigators at the prison have identified Baldizon’s cellmate, Antolin Cepeda, 37, as a suspect in the attack. Cepeda, who was received from Los Angeles County on Jan. 28, 1997, is serving a life sentence for first-degree murder. Baldizon was received from Los Angeles County on May 22, 2013, and was serving a 12-year sentence for assault with a deadly weapon. He was arrested on July 7 2012 and was also charged with assault with a caustic chemical and assault on an elder adult. at the time he was living in San Pedro.

Prison administrators have limited inmate movement in the facility where the incident occurred to facilitate the investigation, officials said.

Folsom Prison—located 20 miles east of Sacramento—houses approximately 2,100 inmates, most of whom are maximum-security inmates serving long sentences or have been management problems at other institutions.

As an interesting side note, legend Johnny Cash recorded his 1968 album at Folsom Prison. Many believe he was incarcerated, but that rumor is untrue. Singer Rick James “Super Freak” spent two years incarcerated at Folsom Prison for imprisoning and assaulting a woman and furnishing drugs to another woman before being released in 1996.

A Fairfield woman was sentenced on January 30 for her conviction in connection with the May, 2011 slaying and torture of a Fairfield man that she and her partners in the crime had accused of robbery.

Tina Odom, 22, had been found guilty in 2013 following a three week trial over allegations she was responsible for the torture and murder of 29 year old Keith Erick Osby Junior. Odom is one of seven defendants in the case.

San Andreas Street in Fairfield

Testimony during the trial established that Odom lived in a residence on San Andreas Street a block south of East Tabor Street in Fairfield with her mother, Ryan S. Bogoski Odom, and the other defendants. Osby was a former housemate at the residence. Ryan Odom and her brother, Frank Bigoski, accused Osby of stealing a PlayStation and laptop when he moved out.

Co-defendant Jennifer Whittington, 20, lured Osby back to the house, saying his help was needed on a robbery the defendants had planned. When Osby got there, Ryan Odom confronted him about the missing items. Then he was beaten. Osby suffered internal bleeding and a massive hemorrhage in the area of his kidneys. Prosecutors affirmed during trial their belief that Bigoski inflicted this wound with a baseball bat.

Osby’s body was found in the parking lot of the Springbrook Masonic Temple in Vallejo the following day, about 20 miles from the Odom home. He had a bullet wound in his head. Prosecutors successfully argued that Odom was responsible for Osby’s death under felony murder and felony torture theories.

Testimony included that Osby was still alive when his body was loaded into a borrowed taxi driven by Damarcus V. Armstrong, Odom’s boyfriend, and another defendant in the case. Testifying in her own defense, Odom admitted that she knew Armstrong was armed with a handgun when he drove away from the San Andreas residence with Osby in the cab.

Jurors also found true two special circumstances to enhance the murder charge– murder by torture and murder during the commission of a felony.

Ms. Ryan S. Bigoski Odom was sentenced to life without parole in November 2013. Jennifer Whittington and Janiel Miller both pleaded no contest to being accessories to the murder with a three year sentence. Khalil Askari-Roberts was sentenced to six years in prison after pleading no contest to voluntary manslaughter. Frank Bigoski was convicted of torture and is awaiting sentencing. Damarcus Armstrong was convicted of first degree murder and awaits a likely life without parole sentence as well.