Aug. 5
Lucky break
At 2:50 a.m. an off-duty deputy notified area deputies about a reckless driver headed westbound on Highway 154 near Cachuma Lake. Deputies responded to the area and saw the vehicle swerving and crossing over lanes. They stopped the vehicle on the north side of the roadway. The driver, 45, of Oxnard couldn’t provide his insurance paperwork. He said he was on parole and was headed to the Chumash Casino. The deputy saw two cans (one spilled) on the rear floorboard. He also smelled alcohol on the man. A DMV computer check showed the man’s driver’s license was valid and that he was on parole. The man passed a field sobriety test. The deputy removed the beer from his car and cited him for open containers and an expired expiration tag. The deputy transported the man to the casino after he signed his citation. The vehicle was towed to a nearby commercial lot.
Aug. 6
Man evades deputies
At 9:28 a.m. deputies responded on a report of vandalism at the café of the Chumash Casino. The suspect, 25, of Oxnard, used pink-colored marker to write on seat cushions of the café’s booths. He also vandalized the bathroom, in all causing an estimated $200 in damages. Casino security personnel had detained the man, but they found nothing on him and he was asked to leave. Later, they were able to match up his photo with the man in the surveillance video. The deputy unsuccessfully attempted to contact the man several times using the number listed on the casino player’s card he was using. He requested the District Attorney file charges against the man.
Aug. 11
Unlicensed driver
At 11:35 p.m. a deputy traveling westbound on Sagunto Street approached the intersection of Edison Street and saw a car drive past a posted stop sign and continue onto Edison. The deputy stopped the vehicle. The driver didn’t have a California driver’s license, instead providing a Mexican identification card along with the vehicle’s registration information. He did not have proof of insurance. He said he’d lived in Santa Maria for the past five years and worked there for the past two. He said he was headed to the Chumash Casino. A computer check showed the man had an outstanding warrant for his arrest. He was booked into county jail.
Aug. 12
Funny money
At 7:54 a.m. a deputy responded to a café in Solvang on a report of passed counterfeit money. Upon arrival, the deputy spoke with the owner, who said earlier one of his employees mistakenly accepted a fake $100 treasury note as payment for a takeout order for $14.95. The subject took the change and only later did the employee recognize the money as counterfeit. The case was suspended, pending leads.
To the unemployment line
Deputies responded to a residence in Solvang for a domestic violence investigation. They spoke with the alleged victim, but the female interrupted the deputy. She was drunk and had to be pulled away so the victim could speak with the deputy in private. The woman was unsteady and swayed. She admitted she’d consumed one and a half bottles of wine. She had watery, bloodshot eyes and had urinated in her shorts. She said she’d driven to the residence but was planning to walk a mile home because she was too drunk. The report did not specify what the domestic dispute was about. The woman was arrested and booked into county jail for public intoxication. She verbally attacked the deputy en route to the jail and was particularly angry because she believed she’d lose her job over the incident.
Aug. 13
Mailbox bandits
At 3:30 p.m. a man reported his mail stolen. He told deputies that at 9 a.m. his mailbox was undisturbed, but at 11:30 a.m. he discovered it open and its contents missing – including bills, new checkbooks and other mail. He was mostly worried about the checkbooks that included more than 100 blank checks for a new account. He later went to the bank to cash an unrelated check and learned that a female subject had attempted to cash one of the stolen checks but couldn’t because of insufficient funds (he only had $50 in the account). The man was one of five people whose mail was taken by the woman, 26, and her male accomplice, 28, both of Santa Paula. Another victim had received a call from her bank informing her that a female was there attempting to pass a check written by her. She didn’t recognize the subject’s name and said she pays her bills via regular mail. The teller told the female subject that the victim would come to the bank to inspect the check, but the subject took the check and said she’d return before leaving. Deputies caught up to the thieves at 5:05 p.m. when the bank contacted the Sheriff’s Department to report that a female was in the drive-through and attempting to pass a suspicious check for $80. Deputies instructed the two to leave the vehicle. The woman claimed that the person who’d written the check to her owed her money. When the deputy asked her what he looked like, she became nervous and said she couldn’t remember and was only in the area to go to the casino. She eventually admitted she attempted to cash the checks forged by the male accomplice. The woman said she didn’t know where he got them and that he had provided a false name to deputies. The deputy confronted the man and he became nervous and accused the female of keeping marijuana in her purse. He also said the stolen mail was in the armrest of the back seat. A search of the vehicle yielded the woman’s purse, containing a used glass pipe and two small Baggies of a white crystalline substance, and a large bundle of mail, checks, miscellaneous paperwork and six smoke detectors. In all, five people had their mail stolen by the subjects. The two were booked into county jail.
Aug. 14
Wrong place, wrong story
At 12:40 p.m. a deputy saw a van traveling westbound on Samantha Drive with its lights off. The deputy stopped the vehicle in the 1000 block of Oak Glen Road. The male and female, both 18, exited the vehicle. They said they were going to see a friend. The deputy smelled marijuana and saw a switchblade in plain view in the female’s right pocket. He retrieved it for his safety. The female, a Solvang resident, at first provided at false name and said she was from New York. The deputy contacted the friend and he said he wasn’t expecting them. In the patrol car, the female provided her real name and date of birth. She said she believed she had a bench warrant for an arrest over being a minor in possession of alcohol. She was arrested and booked into county jail.