Jan. 6
Hanging on
A domestic dispute turned into a near arrest of a local woman. At 10:17 p.m. deputies responded to a gas station parking lot and contacted a man who said a quarrel between he and his girlfriend started at Flying Flags RV Park in Buellton. He said he had readied his fifth-wheel trailer to leave when she jumped into the truck and began driving off without him. He panicked and jumped on the passenger-side running board while she drove out of the park, onto Avenue of Flags, and turned east on Highway 246. The man managed to reach through the open passenger window and turn off the truck. He then let her drive him to the station lot. The deputy noted there were no signs of a physical altercation. The woman, 46, of El Dorado, simply said she “had enough of his (b.s.)” and took his car when he walked away momentarily. She claimed she didn’t know he was hanging on the side of the truck until she pulled onto the highway. A search of the vehicle yielded a hypodermic syringe needle and a meth pipe. The woman admitted it belonged to her and said she had used meth the previous morning. She said she and her boyfriend’s New Year’s resolution was to stop using meth, but she capitulated a couple of times because she couldn’t handle the withdrawal. The man was released. The woman tested positive for amphetamines and was cited and released from the Buellton Sheriff’s station.
Jan. 14
Nothing in life is free – usually
Deputies responded to a Solvang restaurant at 9:11 a.m. and were told by a server that a family of four had just left the restaurant without paying for their dinner. She said she delivered the bill for the food and service, and returned to an empty table but no payment. She said she didn’t recognize the family, whose bill amounted to $100.85. The case was suspended, pending leads.
Jan. 15
Fancy footwork
Deputies were dispatched to Rio Vista Chevrolet on a report of theft. They spoke with an employee who had closed the business a 5 p.m. the day before and ensured all vehicles in the lot were locked and in good order. At 10:15 a.m. he returned to find the windows of several new Chevrolet Tahoes smashed. The doors were still locked and in-dash navigation systems were stolen. Deputies searched the area and found 13 latent prints on the vehicles and several shoe impressions on the seats. The shoes appeared to be men’s Nike size 12. Only one of the vehicles’s had a clean shot print; the others were smudges but appeared to be marks from the same shoes. Deputies took photographs of the vehicles and the damages. The business estimated that the crime cost them $18,500. Deputies contacted other dealerships in the area and provided them with contact information if any of the stolen items were sold or brought to these businesses.
House of cards
A woman reported her wallet stolen and said her debit card had been used at Carl’s Jr. in Buellton. She said that on Jan. 14, between 10:30 p.m. and midnight, she was at the Mandarin Touch in Solvang, left her purse on a purse hook and then danced with friends. She later discovered her wallet missing from her purse the next morning. The investigating deputy checked the surveillance video at the restaurant and observed a Suburban with Santa Maria plates. He called the dealership and learned that the owner was a woman who had been the victim of battery on Jan. 15, less than an hour before the transactions were made at Carl’s Jr. The man, who was still in custody, admitted that he was recently at the bar/restaurant. The deputy went to the suspect’s home and saw the Suburban in the driveway with the same plates shown in the video. He spoke with the man’s mother, who said she was caring for the couple’s children while she was at work and he was in jail. She gave the deputy permission to search the vehicle and he found the victim’s cards inside the center console. He later spoke with the man’s wife, who said the morning after the incident he returned with drinks and food from Carl’s Jr. He told her that he begged for money. The wife said she had seen the cards strewn on the front seat of the vehicle but assumed they belonged to a woman with whom her husband was cheating. At the jail, the man admitted he took the cards but claimed he found them in the area of Copenhagen Liquor. He arrested the man and requested the District Attorney’s Office file charges against the man.
The mother lode
At 11:12 a.m. a deputy patrolling the Chumash Casino parking structure saw a man sitting in a BMW with its lights on. They began to dim as the deputy approached to check on the man’s welfare. The man rolled down the window, then rolled it halfway up when the deputy asked him a couple of questions. The man had a laptop on the passenger seat and was apparently playing chess. The deputy noted the man looked like he was under the influence of a controlled substance. The man said he had no identification and said he came to the casino with a friend, won some money and was waiting for the friend to return. He appeared nervous and repeatedly asked if he could return to the casino to get his friend. The deputy got his full name and date of birth, but found no record of him after a computer check. He asked the man how he was able to collect his winnings without identification. The man then reached in his pocket and handed the deputy his California identification card. Another deputy arrived and opened the driver’s door and instructed the man to exit the car. Instead of complying, the man started the car and put it in reverse. A deputy yelled at him to stop the car and tried reaching for the man, but the car’s movement caused the door to slam on his right elbow. The man sped away. Deputies advised dispatch of the fleeing vehicle and alerted surrounding agencies. A deputy spotted the vehicle headed south on Highway 154 near Cathedral Oaks. They arrested him and booked him into county jail. Inside his vehicle, they found numerous illegal or stolen items: 1.3 grams of methamphetamine, a glass pipe with residue, two scales, four cellular phones, a Gucci woman’s wristwatch, a Bulova men’s wristwatch, two Apple iPods, two police radio scanners and another laptop under the passenger seat. They also found $100 bills amounting to $4,100 in the man’s wallet. Deputies also learned the man’s license was suspended. His vehicle was towed for 30 days to a nearby commercial lot. The man faces three charges, including assault with a deadly weapon.
Jan. 17
Between the lines
Deputies walking through the Chumash Casino parking structure saw two subjects asleep. They walked toward the vehicle and saw a third person sitting in the middle seating area. He woke the man in the passenger seat, who rolled down his window when the deputy approached. The deputy asked if he was OK. He said he and his friend were waiting for another friend to return from the casino. The deputy learned one of the men had recently been placed on probation after being arrested for being under the influence of methamphetamine two days before. As the deputy searched him, he felt the man’s thumbs rubbing against his – a symptom of drug use. He also noticed the man’s pupils were dilated and was experiencing eyelid tremors. He arrested him. The man voluntarily took a drug test showing he had meth in his blood. He said he snorted “five good lines” at a friend’s house two days prior. He said he became addicted to the drug after his ex-wife divorced him. He was cited and released.