Suspect Arrested After Having a Relationship with a Minor

On Thursday April 30, 2015 SCPD Detectives arrested Forrest Reyes for having a 6-month long sexual relationship with a 14 year old female.

Mr. Reyes is 28 years old and a Madera County resident but lived in Santa Cruz for periods of time. He met the 14 year old female on a social media site back in November 2014. She was 13 years old at the time they met. The female juvenile came forward to her parents and then SCPD about this consensual relationship on April 29, 2015.

SCPD Detectives used a ruse to meet with Mr. Reyes at the Dairy Queen in Capitola. Mr. Reyes was taken into custody and booked for several felony crimes related to his relationship with the 14 year old. He is currently being held on $250,000 bail.

Child Annoying Suspect Wanted

The Santa Cruz Police Department is looking for this suspect. He is wanted for questioning in connection to a child annoying case.

On Thursday April 23, 2015 this suspect approached a 16 year old female in the 700 block of California St. The suspect drove up to the female and asked the her for directions. The suspect then asked her for her name and phone number. The suspect continued following the female. The suspect then tried to lure the female closer to his vehicle. The female did not engage with the suspect and safely walked away.

The suspect is described as an Asian or light-skinned African American. He is 23-25 years old, 130-135 pounds, approximately 5'5" tall, black medium length and shaggy hair, and no facial hair. He is described as wearing a gray sweatshirt and khaki pants.

The suspect vehicle is described as a black, newer model two-door vehicle, with tinted windows. The vehicle has silver lining around the edges of the windows.

Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the Santa Cruz Police Department Investigations Unit (831) 420-5820.  Anonymous tips can also be sent to the police department through our Tip Line (831) 420-5995, or click here.  Tipsters can also submit an anonymous tip via our smartphone app or from an SMS text.  Visit our Website for instructions.
 

Sexual Assault Suspect Arrested

                                                     

On Thursday April 23, 2015 the above shown suspect, Lee Cast sexually assaulted a female jogger in the area of Bay St and Lighthouse Ave. At approximately 6:30 a.m. Cast jumped out of some bushes and slapped the female jogger in the buttocks. The victim was able to run away and safely return to her home. Cast was able to avoid apprehension just for a short time.

 

On the same day at approximately 10:00 a.m. a similar incident occurred in the County of Santa Cruz in the area of Portola Ave and Corcoran. A different female was jogging in the area, when Cast jumped out of some bushes and also sexually assaulted her by slapping her in the buttocks. The Santa Cruz Sheriff's Office was able to find Cast in the area but could not find the victim. A witness had witnessed the incident, took a photo of Cast, and called 911.

 

The Santa Cruz Sheriff's Office contacted the Santa Cruz Police Department regarding Cast and the similarities in both cases. The victim in the SCPD case was able to identify Cast as the suspect. Cast was taken into custody for the sexual battery and booked into the Santa Cruz County Jail.

 

The Santa Cruz Sheriff's Office was able to follow up with the victim in their case the following day and Cast was identified once again as the suspect in their case. Since Cast had already been released from jail, they are seeking an arrest warrant for Cast in their case.

 

This is another great example of collaboration between two law enforcement agencies, as well as great assistance from the community. 

Mrs. Doubtfire Has Been Arrested

Here is the real person behind the disguise, also known as the Mrs. Doubtfire bank robber. The suspect is Brandon Calantoc, 31 years old, out of Sand City in Monterey County.

On April 20, 2015 the Carmel PD was investigating a series of auto burglaries occurring in their city. Mr. Calantoc matched some of the descriptions provided and was a person of interest. During their investigation, they spotted Mr. Calantoc driving in his pickup and stopped him. He had warrants for his arrest out of Monterey County for previous burglary offenses. During the search of his vehicle, Carmel PD found drug paraphernalia and stolen property. They also located a purse and locket that matched the photos that Mrs. Doubtfire had during the robbery on April 3, 2015.

Carmel PD booked Mr. Calantoc into the Monterey County Jail on his fresh criminal charges and contacted SCPD regarding the articles found in his vehicle related to the bank robbery. It was determined Mr. Calantoc was the suspect known as Mrs. Doubtfire.

On April 21, 2015 Mr. Calantoc was being released from the Monterey County Jail on his charges in Monterey County. But as soon as he stepped out of the jail and assumed he was free, SCPD Detectives were there to greet him with a new set of handcuffs. Mr. Calantoc was taken into custody for the bank robbery and booked into the Santa Cruz County Jail.

Thanks to all the community members that tried their best to identify Mrs. Doubtfire. Also, a special thanks to Carmel PD for their diligent work and collaborative effort with SCPD!!

Keep Your Eyes Open for this Guy

The Santa Cruz Police Department is constantly battling the up-hill struggle of arresting suspects involved in criminal activity and then dealing with them again shortly after they are released from custody. This last weekend SCPD arrested the same suspect within 14 hours of each other for petty theft and residential burglary. 

On Friday April 18, 2015 the Santa Cruz Police Department responded to the 100 block of Van Ness for a report of a subject stealing a bike. A neighbor witnessed the suspect enter the backyard of a residence and tugging on a bike which was locked up. When the neighbor contacted the suspect, the suspect admitted to trying to steal the bike. SCPD was called and contacted the suspect who continued to tug on the bike. The bike was worth over $300. The suspect, identified as Benjamin Jeffrey Smith, was booked into jail for petty theft.

Smith was released from custody on Saturday April 19, 2015 at approximately 3:00 a.m. Not even 6 hours later Smith was back at it again, but this time trying to victimize a resident on the eastside of town. 

At approximately 9:00 a.m., a neighbor witnessed Smith enter the backyard of a residence in the 200 block of Fairmount. The neighbor called the owner of the residence and notified them of the person in their backyard. The residents then witnessed Smith in their backyard and in their shed. It appeared Smith was trying to steal a bike and an air compressor. SCPD was called and contacted Smith in the backyard. Once again, Smith was booked into jail for residential burglary, loitering on private property, resisting arrest, and possession of a dirk or dagger. This time Smith's bail was increased from $25,000 to $35,000 and hopefully will remain in custody until he gets to speak to a Judge.

Smith has an extensive criminal history with SCPD. Just within the last year and a half, Smith has been arrested multiple times for offenses including residential burglary, vehicle burglary, petty theft, and possession of narcotics.

Based on how history repeats itself, we suspect that Smith will be out in our community fairly soon. Please keep an eye out for him. During the latter incident described above, Smith is believed to be associated with other thieves driving an older dirty white Ford Ranger regular cab pickup. Smith is currently transient.

Thanks to the great neighbors in both of these incidents for being watchful of their neighborhoods and immediately reporting suspicious activity. Both of these are great examples of the community working in collaboration with SCPD.

Arrest of Suspect for Lewd Acts with a Minor

On Thursday April 9, 2015 at 12:00 p.m. the Santa Cruz Police Department arrested a suspect for inappropriate lewd acts with a minor. The victim was more than 10 years younger than the suspect. The suspect was known to the victim. The victim was a 15 year old female.

After an exhaustive investigation by the Santa Cruz Police Department Detectives, the suspect was arrested and booked into the Santa Cruz County Jail on a $100,000 warrant for his arrest on 4 counts of lewd acts with a minor. The investigation included a collaborative effort including law enforcement agencies in Arizona and Virginia.

Suspect: Brian Nelson, 45 years old, and a Santa Cruz resident. (photo below)

 

SCPD Announces Arrests in Homicide Case from Friday April 3, 2015

Background

On Friday April 3, 2015 at approximately 7:30 p.m. the Santa Cruz Police Department responded to the report of gun shots in the area of River St. and North Pacific Ave. Upon our arrival, one victim was located with a single gunshot wound to his upper torso. The victim was pronounced deceased at the scene by Santa Cruz Fire Medical personnel. 

Suspect Brandon Thomas, 22-yrs old

                                                                        Information

The Santa Cruz Police Department has arrested and booked a second suspect for his involvement in the homicide. The second suspect is identified as Jonah Namauu, 23 years, Santa Cruz resident. Namauu was a person of interest early in the investigation. He had been detained on Saturday April 4, 2015, interviewed, and ultimately booked into the jail on a parole violation. Namauu has now been arrested and booked into the County Jail on charges of murder, attempted murder, gang enhancement, discharge of a firearm, the discharge of a firearm from a vehicle, and conspiracy. A photo will be released at a later time pending further investigation.

The first suspect that was arrested on Saturday April 4, 2015 at approximately 11:00 a.m. is identified as Brandon Thomas, 22 years, Santa Cruz resident. Thomas was arrested in less than 24 hours of the homicide on a $1 million dollar arrest warrant. Thomas has been charged with murder, attempted murder, gang enhancement, discharge of a firearm, the discharge of a firearm from a vehicle, and conspiracy.

The victim of the homicide has been identified as Samuel Weinberg, 18 years, Santa Cruz resident.

The investigation is continuing.

Baker-Butler Memorial Day-We Will Never Forget

February 26, 2013 will be a day that we all will never forget. On this day, Sergeant Butch Baker and Detective Elizabeth Butler were tragically killed in the line-of-duty. This day was the worst day in the history of the Santa Cruz Police Department.

On February 24, 2015 the Santa Cruz City Council passed a resolution declaring February 26th as "Baker-Butler Memorial Day" in the City of Santa Cruz in perpetuity and authorizing City of Santa Cruz staff to lower flags at all City facilities to half-staff on this date each year. Mayor Don Lane asked the Council to adopt the resolution designating, in perpetuity, February 26th as "Baker-Butler Memorial Day", honoring our fallen Officers while serving the community they loved. Council acknowledged the exemplary service and the ultimate sacrifice these Officers and their families made. Council adopted the resolution with a 7-0 vote.

 

Tomorrow, Thursday February 26, 2015 marks the two-year anniversary that the Santa Cruz Police Department so tragically lost our brother and sister. We are reminded of the constant danger of our profession that we have all so proudly been sworn-in to perform. There remains a constant sense of tremendous sadness from this loss. The Santa Cruz Police Department Family continues to try and heal, and will always remember Sergeant Butch Baker and Detective Elizabeth Butler for the ultimate sacrifice they made for this community. 

We are so grateful for all the love and support shown to us by so many in the community.  Many of you have shared how much Butch and Elizabeth meant to you and how much you appreciate all the hard work by all the men and women here at SCPD.  

We miss both of them and will never forget!





The "Bubbly Bandit" is in Custody

On February 10, 2014 the Santa Cruz Police Department posted photos of the "Bubbly Bandit" stealing $600 worth of high-end champagne from Shopper's Corner.

 

The very next morning we received a tip identifying the "Bubbly Bandit" as Laurie Soderman.

On February 16, 2014 Mrs. Soderman turned herself in at the Santa Cruz Police Department. She was booked into the County Jail for misdemeanor theft and a probation violation. She has an extensive history for theft and is currently on felony probation for prior theft convictions. 

Two Santa Cruz Police Officers Commended For Their Work

On February 10, 2015 both Officer Sean Terry and Officer Matthew Mulvihill received awards presented by Chief Kevin Vogel at the City Council Meeting. Both Officers received awards recognizing their efforts in the recovery of stolen vehicles within the City of Santa Cruz. Officer Terry received the White 10851 Award and Officer Mulvihill received the Master 10851 Award. 10851 is the vehicle code section for stolen vehicle.

The 10851 Award is a state award given in cooperation with AAA and the California Highway Patrol. The Award recognizes superior efforts in the recovery of stolen vehicles.

Officer Terry received the White 10851 Award for recovering 12 stolen vehicles and making 4 arrests within a 12-month period. These recoveries resulted in $58,700 worth of stolen vehicles. This is Officer Terry's first 10851 Award.

Officer Mulvihill received the Master 10851 Award for recovering 111 stolen vehicles since 2011. Officer Mulvihill received the White 10851 Award in 2011, 2 in 2012, 2013, and 2014. The 111 stolen vehicle recoveries totaled over $500,000 worth of stolen vehicles. Officer Mulvihill was one of 3 Officers in the entire Coastal Division to receive this award. The Coastal Division runs from Ventura County up to Santa Cruz County. The last time an Officer from the Santa Cruz Police Department received this award was over 20 years ago.

Both of these awards are tremendous accomplishments by both Officer Terry and Officer Mulvihill. Please join the Santa Cruz Police Department Family in congratulating both of these fine Officers!!

Name that "Bubbly Bandit"

On January 19, 2015 at approximately 5:30 p.m. this individual forgot to pay for some high-end champagne from Shopper's Corner. She made off with 6 bottles of champagne worth $600 total. It's hard to tell on these photos, but she concealed all 6 bottles in her jacket.

After walking out of the store, she drove off in an older model green Ford Explorer.

These are great photos, and somebody has to know who she is. We would appreciate any help from the community on solving this "Bubbly Bandit".

Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the Santa Cruz Police Department Investigations Unit (831) 420-5820.  Anonymous tips can also be sent to the police department through our Tip Line (831) 420-5995, or click here to go to our Website.  Tipsters can also submit an anonymous tip via our smartphone app or from an SMS text.  Visit our Website for instructions.

Stay Connected with Important Public Safety Information

The Santa Cruz Police Department uses the Code Red Emergency Notification system through the Santa Cruz Regional 911 dispatch center to notify community members of an active emergency situation.

With the growing trend of households giving up their traditional landline phones and going completely cellular, we have found some people are being left out of the information loop during these emergency situations. 

To help ensure you are not left out, the Santa Cruz Police Department encourages community members to register their cell phones with the Code Red Emergency Notification system and associate their cell phone numbers with their residence or business.

 

On the home page, all you have to do is click on “Register your Cellular or VOIP Phone for Code Red Emergency Notifications”. That link will take you to a page where you list your name, address (residential or business) and phone number. It’s that simple! To quickly and easily register simply click here.

The Code Red Emergency Notification system also provides a mobile app that can be downloaded onto your cell phone through the Apple Store or the Google Play. The app provides a location-based multimedia alert system. You will be required to activate your GPS services so the system can send you alerts based on your location. Subscribers within the location of an alert issued by a public safety organization using the Code Red Emergency Notification system will receive alerts through this application.

Simply click here to begin the process to download the mobile app either for an iphone or Android. Once you are on the home page, you click on “Code Red” and that will take you to this page below. You can watch a video that talks about how the system works and can begin the downloading process by clicking “Code Red Mobile Alert app”. This will present the option of going to the Apple Store or Google Play.  

 

The Santa Cruz Police Department and the Santa Cruz Regional 911 dispatch center strives to keep community members informed with up-to-date public safety information and strongly suggests the community to stay connected with valuable information. By going to either one of these websites above, you can be connected either at home, work, or on the road. You can also receive alerts through the Code Red Emergency Notification System while in another jurisdiction that uses this same system.

DUI Collision and Arrest, Power Outage

On January 29, 2015 just before midnight, officers responded to Soquel Ave and Forest Ave for a solo vehicle collision into a P.G.& E power pole. Officers found the driver, identified as Jose Antonio Ramirez Diaz at the scene of the collision with minor injuries. The 2002 Chevy Tahoe that Diaz was driving had sheared the power pole, which was only hanging by the attached wires. Diaz refused medical attention for his minor injuries.

Diaz was placed under arrest for driving without a driver's license and driving while under the influence of alcohol. It was estimated that 1200 P.G.&E customers lost their power as a result of this collision. Parts of Soquel Ave were shut down until P.G.&E responded to make the area safe. A Nixle Alert was sent out advising the community of the traffic conditions.

Here is a photo of what happens when you drive a vehicle and you really shouldn't be driving: