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SANTA BARBARA, CA – 5/21/2007 – On 5/18/07, police responded to a disturbance call in the 600 block of Kentia.  They stopped a vehicle driven by Robin Tack, age 37, who was involved in the disturbance.  Although the disturbance itself was relatively minor, Tack was arrested for parole violation, driving on a suspended license, and possession of marijuana.

On 5/19/07 at 12:45 a.m. police were conducting a routing check of Madison’s nightclub.  The officers interrupted two men in the process of using cocaine in the bathroom.  Arrested for possession of cocaine were: Jeffrey Alvarado, age 21; and, Jesse Perez III, age 27.

On 5/19/07 at 10:30 p.m. police arrested Aaron Marcellino, age 21, for the theft of a $600 surfboard.  The theft occurred two weeks ago at the victim’s carport in the 2100 block of Castillo Street.  A neighbor had witnessed the theft, spotting the suspect driving away with the stolen surfboard.  Tonight, the witness spotted the suspect’s vehicle parked around the corner and alerted the victim.  A confrontation ensued as a group of the victim’s friends confronted the suspect, Marcellino.  In the course of the investigation, police recovered the stolen surfboard from Marcellino’s garage.  Reportedly, two weeks ago Marcellino was visiting a friend who lives in the neighborhood when he noticed the surfboard lying unsecured in a carport.  Marcellino felt that “the owner apparently did not care about the surfboard because he did not go through the trouble of locking it up.” Marcellino was booked for grand theft.

5/19/07 at 10:55 p.m.: Two men were arrested after trying to pass counterfeit money at a downtown nightclub.  The incident began when three men each had a Corona beer at the Study Hall.  William Shafer, age 25, of Las Vegas gave the bartender a fifty-dollar bill to cover the $11 bar tab.  The bartender held the bill under a U.V. lamp.  The security strip on the bill showed it was actually a five-dollar bill.  The bartender confronted Shafer who denied knowing the bill was bogus.  Shafer paid the tab with genuine money but his request that the counterfeit fifty be returned was denied.  Shafer quickly left with his two companions.  The bartender called police who stopped the three men a block away.  When questioned about the phony money, Shafer said he received the fake fifty in change from a gas station.  This innocent explanation became suspect when police discovered five additional counterfeit fifty-dollar bills hidden in shoes worn by Shafer’s companion named Cameron Funkhauser, age 29, of Ventura.  The serial number on one of these fake bills matched the one passed at the Study Hall.  Shafer was arrested for passing counterfeit currency and Funkhauser for possession of counterfeit currency.  The third man was questioned and released.  The U.S. Secret Service has been notified.

SANTA BARBARA, CA – 5/17/2007.  A Ventura man is in custody today for committing identity theft against a Massachusetts woman.  Francisco Vences, age 27, was arrested yesterday by detectives at his workplace in the 600 block of East Montecito Street.  The investigation began when a 24-year-old Boston woman received a letter from the California Franchise Tax Board.  The letter stated that she had not declared $42,000 income in her 2005 taxes and owed $1,700 in late taxes and penalties.  The woman investigated and discovered the income was paid by a Santa Barbara based construction company.  The woman called the construction company and was told that their employee Vences had earned the money and was using her social security number.  She reported her findings to police.  Detective Andy Hill investigated and discovered that, in addition to the victim and Vences, two other people were fraudulently using the victim’s social security number in Rhode Island and Georgia.  Detectives know it is common for numerous fake social security cards to bear the same number.

Yesterday morning, Detectives arrested Vences at his construction workplace.  They recovered the tattered bogus social security card in his wallet.  Vences explained that ten years ago he illegally entered the U.S. from Mexico.  He needed a social security number and a Resident Alien Card in order to get a job.  An acquaintance introduced him to a man who, for a price, supplied him with counterfeit documents.  Vences began using the social security number seven years ago.  He began filing income taxes under the false social security number four years ago.  With time, his pay increased to a yearly income of $42,000.  Vences did not intend to cause problems for the victim in this case.  However, using her social security number has exposed her to legal entanglement with income tax officials.  In addition, Vences had credit cards and a credit history, which normally require a social security number.  Vences was booked for identity theft, falsely impersonating another person, and possession of counterfeit identification, bail $20,000.

SANTA BARBARA, CA – 5/15/2007 - Since 1962, the week including May 15th has been declared by Congress to be National Police Officer Week.  Signed into law by President John F. Kennedy, this week is set aside to honor the memories of officers who have fallen in the line of duty.  In keeping with this tradition, Police Chief Cam Sanchez will preside over a short ceremony tomorrow (5/16/07) at 11:00 on the steps of SBPD.

Representatives from other law enforcement agencies will be present including: The California Highway Patrol, Santa Barbara Sheriff’s Department, and the University of California, Santa Barbara Police Department.  About thirty school aged children will be on hand to present letters and cards of appreciation to the law enforcement representatives.

The last Santa Barbara Police Officer to be killed in the line of duty was H. Thomas Guerry, shot dead on 1/13/70 while trying to arrest armed robbery suspects.

The media and public are welcome to attend this short memorial.

SANTA BARBARA, CA – 5/11/2007.  The suspect in yesterday’s stabbing is in custody, charged with assault with a deadly weapon.  The suspect, whose name is being withheld because he is a juvenile, is a 14-year-old male who lives on the Westside, within two blocks of the assault location.  The victim remains in good condition at Cottage Hospital, and is expected to make a full recovery.  Both the suspect and victim are 8th grade students: The victim at La Cumbre Middle School; the suspect at La Colina.  Both were recently suspended from school.  Detectives say the primary motive for the stabbing is not gang related; however, gang influences do run through both participants’ backgrounds.

Following the stabbing, detectives quickly determined the suspect’s identity.  Within a few hours of the assault police contacted the suspect’s parents, described as the mother and stepfather.  Both were cooperative and allowed police to search their residence for the suspect.  The suspect was not at home.  At 9:30 p.m., the suspect turned himself in at the police department, accompanied by his mother.  He was questioned and booked at Juvenile Hall.

The suspect and victim are well acquainted with each other, and are one-time friends.  Recently, there was a falling out due to the suspect’s belief that the victim had stolen some money.  The victim denied committing the theft.  The day before the stabbing the suspect told the victim to “watch your back.”  Earlier in the day of the stabbing, the suspect again threatened the victim, and brandished a small sledgehammer.  Just prior to the stabbing, the suspect again challenged the victim who agreed to fight without weapons.  The victim was getting the better of the fight when the suspect pulled a knife and stabbed the victim twice in the back.  The victim staggered to a friend’s house for assistance and the suspect fled.  The knife has not been recovered.

SANTA BARBARA, CA – 5/10/2007.  Today at 3:35 p.m. police dispatch received an urgent 911 call regarding a stabbing that just occurred.  Police and paramedics responded to a residence in the 500 block of San Pascual Street.  A blood trail led from the sidewalk to the front door. Emergency personnel found the victim inside the residence, being attended to by teenaged friends/acquaintances.  The victim is a 14-year-old male who lives nearby on the Westside.  He sustained at least one stab wound to his torso.  He was transported by ambulance to Cottage Hospital.  He has been admitted in stable condition.  A blood trail helped investigators backtrack to the scene of the stabbing, located across the street and down a driveway within the same block as the residence.  Police sealed off the block for a few hours as they combed the neighborhood for witnesses and evidence.  The exact circumstances and motive of the assault remain under investigation; however, detectives have “strong leads” on the identity of the suspect. The suspect is described as a male teen, about the same age as the victim, and who also lives on the Westside.

SANTA BARBARA, CA – 5/8/2007.  This afternoon at 2:15 p.m. a male suspect was inside of Staples Store at 410 State Street.  An employee noticed him pushing a shopping cart loaded with a new printer toward the State Street Exit.  The suspect bypassed the cash register, apparently intending to leave without paying for the printer.  The employee followed the suspect who immediately abandoned the shopping cart and sprinted outside.  The employee followed him all around the store to the rear parking lot.  The suspect jumped into a waiting 2007 Dodge Caravan which was backed into a parking space in the back parking lot, engine running, and two more subjects inside.  The van quickly accelerated away onto Gutierrez Street.  The employee called police and provided the vehicle license number.  Police dispatchers matched the vehicle as being involved in two recent burglaries out of Hawthorne, CA.  A BOL (be on the lookout) was issued.  Minutes later Officer John Thompson spotted the vehicle driving downtown.  With plenty of backup on-hand, police stopped the vehicle at 300 E. Gutierrez Street.  The three occupants were detained without incident.  Inside the vehicle were two brand-new computers and a printer.  Detectives believe these were stolen earlier today from Office Max at 219 E. Gutierrez Street.  Also inside the vehicle were maps and directions to numerous computer stores throughout Los Angeles, Ventura, and Santa Barbara counties.

The identities of the three suspects have not been determined.  All three possessed counterfeit identification.  Their fingerprints have been submitted to State and Federal fingerprint databanks for comparison.  The van is owned by a vehicle rental company.  Reportedly, it was rented by means of a counterfeit credit card.  The case remains under investigation; however, all three suspects have been arrested for burglary, criminal conspiracy, and auto theft.

SANTA BARBARA, CA – 5/7/2007. A 19-year-old suspect is in custody today following a series of violent crimes including carjacking, kidnap, and sexual assault. The story began last week when the suspect, Jose Morales Leon, age 19, of Santa Ynez, was visiting relatives in Salt Lake City. He took possession of a relative’s vehicle, drove to nearby group home, and picked up his former girlfriend, a 17-year-old young mother along with their infant child. Leon used a pretext of taking her out dancing. Instead, he jumped on the interstate and drove non-stop to California. Leon drove them to his residence on a Santa Ynez ranch.

On 5/5/07, Leon drove to Oxnard, ostensibly to secure employment. His car broke down in the Carl’s Junior parking lot on Oxnard Blvd. Needing transportation, Leon used a handgun to confront a 25-year-old woman. At gunpoint, he forced the woman into the passenger seat of her 2003 Toyota Matrix. Under threat of being shot, he kidnapped her and carjacked the vehicle. Leon drove the victim to Santa Barbara. He forced her to withdraw money from an ATM located at a Westside business. Leon drove her to a secluded area on Miramonte Drive where he sexually assaulted her. The woman feared for her life. Her only goal was to survive the incident. She talked Leon into letting her outside the vehicle. He consented but remained next to her, reminding her that he still had the gun. Just then a vehicle pulled into a driveway across the street. The suspect was momentarily distracted. Seeing her chance, the victim ran to the car, shouting for help. The suspect then fled the scene in the stolen car. A citizen drove the victim downtown where they flagged down a passing police officer. As the facts became known, Oxnard Police Department was contacted. They found the suspect’s broken-down vehicle abandoned in the Carl’s Junior parking lot. Police tracked down the registered owner in Salt Lake City, Utah, and learned the suspect’s identity.

Meanwhile, the suspect returned to his Santa Ynez residence as though nothing had happened. A description of the carjacked vehicle was sent to all local agencies. Just after midnight on 5/5/07, a SB Sheriff’s deputy spotted the stolen Toyota Matrix driving in Buellton. The suspect led police on a high-speed chase reaching speeds over 100 miles per hour. The suspect lost control and crashed in a field in Lompoc. The vehicle caught fire and, between the damage and the flames. A 19-year-old suspect is in custody today following a series of violent crimes including carjacking, kidnap, and sexual assault. The story began last week when the suspect, Jose Morales Leon, age 19, of Santa Ynez, was visiting relatives in Salt Lake City. He took possession of a relative’s vehicle, drove to nearby group home, and picked up his former girlfriend, a 17-year-old young mother along with their infant child. Leon used a pretext of taking her out dancing. Instead, he jumped on the interstate and drove non-stop to California. Leon drove them to his residence on a Santa Ynez ranch.Meanwhile, the suspect returned to his Santa Ynez residence as though nothing had happened. A description of the carjacked vehicle was sent to all local agencies. Just after midnight on 5/5/07, a SB Sheriff’s deputy spotted the stolen Toyota Matrix driving in Buellton. The suspect led police on a high-speed chase reaching speeds over 100 miles per hour. The suspect lost control and crashed in a field in Lompoc. The vehicle caught fire and, between the damage and the flames, was completely destroyed. The suspect and a male passenger were able to exit the vehicle, uninjured. The driver was Leon, who was taken into custody without incident. The passenger was a hitchhiker Leon had picked up; he was questioned and released.Santa Barbara Police Detective LaTorre heads the investigation. Based on statements and the established timeline, detectives recovered the handgun in bushes on Miramonte Drive near where he victim escaped. Leon was arrested for: Armed carjacking, armed robbery, kidnapping, and sexual assault. His bail is set at one million dollars. The circumstances of how Leon obtained the vehicle and brought his former girlfriend to Santa Barbara remain under investigation.

SANTA BARBARA, CA – 5/3/2007.  Today at 12:45 p.m. a fugitive was flown back to Santa Barbara under armed guard to face charges of pimping and pandering a minor.  The suspect, Leonard Charles Rivers, age 44, was arrested in Las Vegas for enticing a 16-year-old female into a life of prostitution.  The case broke open on 12/12/06 when police responded to an upper State Street hotel on a ‘routine’ disturbance call.  The disturbance was an argument between the young female and one of her pimps, who left just prior to police arrival.  An officer contacted the female, gained her trust, and discovered she was a run-away from Orange County.  The girl said that after spending a few days “living on the streets”, a male pimp offered her a better life filled with “nice clothes” and the necessities of life, if, she would work for him.  The desperate girl agreed, and was soon immersed in a sordid lifestyle of prostitution.  She spoke of being whisked from Orange County to Ventura, to Las Vegas, and to Santa Barbara to work as a prostitute.  Clients were solicited from Internet web postings.  The girl was threatened with beatings if she did not cooperate and make money for her pimps.

After corroborating the victim’s situation, police arrested Tanya Leann Johnson, age 26, driving downtown in a champagne-colored Cadillac that was registered to Rivers.  Johnson was booked for pimping and pandering with bail set at $250,000.  She remains in County Jail awaiting a possible court trial.  Detective Chad Hunt investigated the case and obtained a warrant for the co-suspect, Leonard Rivers, believed hiding in Las Vegas.  Because of the inter-state flight to avoid prosecution, the U.S. Marshall’s Fugitive Task Force joined the hunt.  On 03/12/07, U.S. Marshalls arrested Rivers in an area of Las Vegas known for street level prostitution.  He was held in a Las Vegas jail on $250,000 bail.  Upon arrival at SB Airport, Rivers was booked at County Jail on charges of enticing a minor to commit lewd acts, pandering, and human trafficking.

SANTA BARBARA, CA – 4/27/2007 – Beginning early this year, the lower Eastside has been plagued by auto theft.  Between the months of January to April, Fifteen Toyota Camry automobiles built between 1987 and 1991 were stolen from this area.  The target ‘zone’ for these thefts extends from Milpas to Salinas Streets; and from Cota to Punta Gorda Streets.  Of these fifteen, eight were recovered abandoned in the Inglewood-Hawthorne area of Los Angeles.  Adding to the mystery was nine additional Camry vehicles stolen from Inglewood-Hawthorne that were found abandoned in the same Eastside target ‘zone.’  In addition to the fifteen plus nine stolen Camry vehicles, three 1989 to 1992 Nissan Sentra vehicles were stolen from the ‘zone’ in the same four-month period.

In response to the extraordinary number of thefts, a Los Angeles regional auto theft taskforce assisted with the investigation.  Acting on a tip about a possible suspect, the task force set up surveillance outside the suspect’s Inglewood residence.  Sure enough, police spotted Antonio Moreno, age 31 driving a black 1988 Toyota Camry that had been reported stolen a few days earlier in Santa Barbara.  Moreno was stopped and arrested for auto theft.  Moreno had used a simple device to bypass the ignition lock and start the car.  Similar devices are often able to start mid 1980s to early 1990s Japanese vehicles.  SBPD detectives interviewed Moreno at the Los Angeles City Jail.  Through statements and physical evidence Moreno was linked to 26 counts of auto theft.  The detectives determined that, although living in Inglewood, Moreno was romantically involved with a Santa Barbara woman living near the intersection of Soledad and Quinientos Streets.  Her residence is the epicenter of the ‘zone’ where all 26 vehicles were either stolen or recovered.  Their relationship was stormy, with the woman trying to break off all contact during the last several weeks. It appears that Moreno, who neither possesses his own vehicle or even a drivers’ license, has been stealing vehicles as transportation to pursue the relationship.  The woman was questioned and released.  Moreno remains in custody in Los Angeles pending a return to Santa Barbara to answer to local auto theft charges.

SBPD urges the public to safeguard their vehicles.  Be aware of the most popular models stolen.  In addition to factory door and ignition locks, consider the use of an alarm or secondary theft deterrent such as steering wheel locks.  Experience has proven that, like water, auto thieves seek the path of least resistance and will usually bypass hardened targets.