First published in the Nov. 12 print issue of the South Pasadena Review.
A man arrested in South Pasadena last week after an alleged carjacking in Ventura County was in custody ahead of a court appearance scheduled for Wednesday.
The 38-year-old Santa Paula man was being held on $120,000 bail, according to records from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. On Wednesday, he was being held in the department’s Inmate Reception Center before a scheduled appearance at the Alhambra courthouse. The South Pasadena Police Department arrested him on Saturday for suspected carjacking.
Officers were sent to the 200 block of Grace Drive at 2:04 a.m. Saturday after there was a report of a suspicious vehicle. After finding the vehicle, officers determined that it was reportedly stolen at gunpoint in Oxnard the prior day, the department said.
Officers arrested the motorist without incident, the department said, and found a loaded shotgun inside the vehicle alongside various other “items of evidentiary value.” The suspect was on parole for a prior conviction and also had an outstanding arrest warrant for alleged battery of a police officer and vehicle theft.
The man was booked for carjacking and for being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm, in addition to the parole violation and arrest warrant.
In a statement, Police Chief Brian Solinsky lauded the responding officers for using the “utmost restraint” during the arrest.
Those with any additional information are asked to contact SPPD at (626) 403-7270.
