Police blotter

DAILY SOUND STAFF REPORT

Oct. 2, 3 p.m. — Authorities arrested two men in connection to thefts of copper piping from a local business after developing hard evidence they had sold copper to a local scrap yard. The case began on Sept. 25, when police took a 46-year-old man listed as homeless into custody for attempted burglary of copper from a local business.

The suspect was found with another man, a 55-year-old, who was also detained. During their investigation, officers learned the business had experienced problems with prior thefts possibly involving the same suspects. Arrested for parole violations on Oct. 2, the second suspect denied any involvement in copper thefts.
Detectives, however, had tracked down a receipt showing he had recycled 49 pounds of copper piping on Sept. 24 at Santa Barbara Iron and Metal. Authorities also watched surveillance footage from the scrap yard showing both suspects recycling the copper materials. Police eventually booked both men in lieu of $20,000 bail for burglary and possession of stolen property.

Oct. 2, 9:57 p.m. — Police arrived in the 400 block of W. Anapamu Street on reports of a robbery in progress to find the victim had made it to her home in the 1100 block of San Pascual Street. The 20-year-old woman told police she was walking along the street and heard someone running up behind her.
When she turned, a man grabbed her throat with one hand and her cell phone with the other before asking her for money. The victim responded by saying she didn’t have any cash and the suspect then asked for her purse. She told police the man then began to touch her breast, but stopped because he heard voice nearby.
After letting go of her throat, the suspect handed back her cell phone and pulled a knife. He reportedly grabbed her purse and rifled through it, pulling out a credit card and grabbing the woman’s cell phone again. She said he then threw the cell phone and credit card back at her before fleeing to the Anapamu footbridge.

Oct. 2, 11 p.m. — Police tracked down a man suspected of breaking into the physical education building at Santa Barbara City College and posing as a football coach to get away. Authorities initially responded to reports of a burglary at the campus on Sept. 19, where employees said they had spotted a man in the building and stopped him.
The suspect claimed to be a football coach and left. It soon became evident to employees that the man had lied to make his escape. During the subsequent investigation, officers lifted a fingerprint from a window that had been forced open.
The fingerprint came back positive for a 40-year-old Santa Barbara man on parole for burglary. Officers tracked the man down and arrested him for parole violations. Under questioning, he denied breaking into the physical education building, but could not explain how his fingerprint ended up on the window. Authorities booked him in lieu of $20,000 bail for burglary.

Oct. 3, 12:39 a.m. — Officers responded to the Shoreline Café, 801 Shoreline Dr., after the owner reported a burglary. The man told police he had been contacted by his alarm company minutes earlier to report an alarm had been activated. Upon arriving to the business, he found two exit doors open and items inside moved or knocked over.
Detectives determined the items of interest included beer and canned foods. The owner told authorities this marked the eighth break-in at his business in nine years. Authorities have no suspects and the investigation is ongoing.

Oct. 3, 11:49 p.m. — A police officer on patrol spotted a black Cadillac in the 1000 block of Anacapa Street protruding into the intersection with its rear tires in the crosswalk while stopped at a red light. During a subsequent traffic stop, the driver said he did not have a valid license. The officer noted an odor of alcohol and took the uncooperative man into custody.
During a DUI evaluation at the police station, the man refused to complete sobriety tests and asked for his attorney. He also refused to provide breath or blood samples, but officers managed to complete a forced blood draw.
Police noted the suspect had his two children, a 5-year-old boy and 3-year-old girl, in the backseat of the car. Authorities booked the 28-year-old Santa Barbara man for driving without a license or insurance, DUI and child endangerment.

Oct. 4, 11:24 p.m. — A 22-year-old man called police after being robbed at knifepoint in the area of N. Hope Avenue and Via Lucero. Officers learned the man was walking home from the bank when two men approached and demanded money.
One suspect pushed the victim to the ground as the other pulled out a large butcher knife. The victim handed over his wallet and the two suspects, described as 19-year-old men with baggy clothing and bandanas over their faces, fled on foot.

Oct. 5, 10:57 a.m. — Police arrived at a home in the 100 block of San Roque Road after a resident reported her laptop, worth an estimated $1,700, had been stolen. Authorities learned that the victim, a 23-year-old woman, had her car burglarized the day prior in a city lot. During the auto burglary, checks listing her home address had been taken.
When the woman returned home after the car burglary, she didn’t notice anything out of place. The following morning, when she went to use her laptop, she discovered it was missing.
Her iPod, televisions and DVD player remained in plain sight and authorities could find no signs of forced entry. All house keys had been accounted for, although the victim said she noticed the deadbolt to a side door had been unlocked.