Prowler, suspected gang attack keep cops busy

ERIC LINDBERG
DAILY SOUND STAFF WRITER

Santa Barbara police had another busy weekend, arresting a Goleta man for prowling and residential burglary, investigating a suspected gang attack and dealing with a family dispute that sent one man to the hospital.

Saturday, November 3
After two months of investigation into several cases of prowling, peeping and residential burglaries in the 200 block of W. Islay Street, undercover Santa Barbara police officers conducted a stake-out in that neighborhood and arrested a Goleta man, authorities said.
At 1 a.m. on Saturday, officers spotted a man, later identified as Loren Bradley Allen, 32, standing near a bedroom window and peeking inside, Police Spokesman Lt. Paul McCaffrey said. After determining Allen had no reason for being on the private property, police arrested him for prowling and peeking.
A search of Allen’s nearby vehicle turned up several pairs of women’s underwear, one of which was identified as a stolen item by a burglary victim, Lt. McCaffrey said. Allen faces two counts of residential burglary and one count of attempted burglary, prowling and peeking, police said, and his bail is set at $50,000. Anyone with more information is asked to contact Det. Chad Hunt at 897-2335.

At 4:40 a.m., five men confronted an intoxicated 20-year-old Santa Barbara man at the intersection of Mission and Castillo streets, Lt. McCaffrey said, taunting him and pulling out knives. Authorities said the victim described the suspects as “gang members.”
After punching the victim and slashing at him with knives, the suspects fled the scene, Lt. McCaffrey said. The victim received minor cuts to his stomach and hand, but did not require hospitalization, he added.

Later Saturday morning, at 8:45, officers arrived on the scene of a traffic collision at 2900 De la Vina St. Police determined Mary Lee Semler, 50, had been driving south along De la Vina Street when she veered to the left and crashed into two trucks parked in a nearby parking lot, causing major damage and knocking one truck on its side, Lt. McCaffrey said.
Although Semler told police her steering system had malfunctioned, officers noted she appeared lethargic and conducted a field sobriety test, authorities said, which she failed. Police also found a syringe loaded with what appeared to be a controlled substance, Lt. McCaffrey said.
Officers arrested Semler on suspicion of driving under the influence of a controlled substance, and possession of drugs and drug paraphernalia, Lt. McCaffrey said, adding that her bail is set at $30,000.

Sunday, November 4
After arriving in the backyard of a home in the 500 block of W. Gutierrez Street at 4:35 a.m., police found an unconscious 40-year-old man with a serious head injury, authorities said. Following a trail of blood indoors, officers spoke with numerous residents, Lt. McCaffrey said, determining that as many as 20 men resided at the single-family home.
Most had been sleeping and could not provide any information, he said, but once the victim regained consciousness after being treated by paramedics, he identified his assailant as Juan Jacinto Bello, 26, his nephew.
Lt. McCaffrey said the two men appeared to have been arguing over Bello’s interest in the victim’s wife, who lives in Mexico, when Bello allegedly hit the victim on the head with a beer bottle numerous times.
Officers found Bello in the home, covered with blood, Lt. McCaffrey said, placing him under arrest for assault with a deadly weapon and battery causing serious bodily injury. His bail is set at $50,000. The victim received treatment at Cottage Hospital, authorities said, and is expected to make a full recovery.