by Cindy Summers
Police reports are provided to us by the Ventura Police Department and are not the opinions of the Ventura Breeze. All suspects mentioned are assumed to be innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
Resisting Arrest
On July 18, at approximately 9:45am, the Ventura Police Department Command Center received a call of a vagrant setting up a camp in the parking lot of a business in the 5500 block of Telegraph Rd. The officer arrived and contacted the subject, later identified a 38 year old vagrant Ryan Evanson. While the officer was speaking to Evanson, he suddenly removed a butter knife and held it up to his own throat. Evanson did not threaten the officer, although he started asking the officer to shoot him. Evanson then dropped the knife and began running, ultimately onto the campus of Buena High School. The officer caught him in the parking lot of the school and took him into custody without further incident.
As a precaution, the police department requested that Buena High School be placed on a lockdown, while officers were able to catch Evanson and take him into custody.
Attempted Car Jacking By a Really Dumb Guy
On July 19, at approximately 8:15pm, the Ventura Police Command Center received a 911 call of an attempted carjacking. Officers arrived on scene and learned that the victim (an off duty Ventura police officer) was sitting in his personal vehicle in the parking lot of the 99 cent store when he noticed the suspect, 53 year old Kenneth Cornwell, casing vehicles in the parking lot. Cornwell approached the officer’s vehicle and saw the officer sitting in the driver’s seat. Cornwell then attempted to open the locked driver’s door. Cornwell then ran to the passenger’s door and opened the door.
Fearing for his safety, and the safety of his infant child in the vehicle with him, the officer retrieved his firearm and identified himself as a police officer to Cornwell. The officer detained Cornwell until patrol officers arrived.
Stolen Vehicle Recovery and Arrest
On July 19, at 10:30pm, Ventura Police officers were dispatched to the parking lot of Vons for a call of a subject acting suspiciously inside of a vehicle. The vehicle’s alarm was sounding and the person inside the vehicle was reportedly looking around nervously. Officers arrived as the vehicle was pulling out of a parking stall. The driver, 21 year old Santa Barbara resident Jose Barradas Benites, was detained and it was discovered that the vehicle had been stolen from Santa Barbara earlier in the day.
Benites was arrested and later booked into Ventura County Jail for being in possession of a stolen vehicle. The stolen vehicle was returned to the owner.
Stolen Vehicle Arrest
On July 20 at 11:50pm, a Ventura Police patrol officer observed 41 year old Ventura vagrant Kirtis Lund enter a Dodge Durango in the Loops Motor Lodge parking lot, located at 3135 E. Main Street. The officer conducted a registration check on the Durango and learned it had recently been stolen from a rental car agency in Ventura.
As the officer was waiting for additional police units to arrive, Lund exited the parking lot and drove west on Main Street. The officer followed Lund to the 3200 block of Channel Drive where a high-risk enforcement stop was conducted. Lund was ordered out the vehicle and was taken into custody without incident. Lund was placed under arrest and later booked in to the Ventura County Jail for being in possession of a stolen vehicle and drug paraphernalia.
Second Degree Murder Occurs During Police Chase
On July 22, at 2:15pm, two Ventura Police detectives were driving westbound on the 126 Freeway in an unmarked police unit when a reckless vehicle driven by the suspect, 24 year old Santa Paula resident Victor Martinez, collided with them. After the collision, the suspect fled from the scene and continued driving recklessly westbound on the freeway at a high rate of speed. Because of the high rate of speed, the detectives were unable to catch up with him, however a Ventura Police patrol officer who was in the area of Wells Road saw the vehicle as it continued westbound on the freeway. The officer drove onto the freeway and caught up to the suspect near Kimball Road. The suspect exited the freeway at the Kimball Road off ramp, and the officer activated his overhead lights in an attempt to stop the vehicle.
The suspect did not yield but instead accelerated and ran a red light at the off ramp’s intersection with Kimball Road. As he ran the red light, he collided with two vehicles which were traveling southbound through the intersection on a green light. The first vehicle he struck was a motorcycle. The second was an SUV.
The suspect did not stop but instead drove away southbound on Kimball Road. After a short distance, he left the vehicle in drive, got out of the moving vehicle and ran away. The patrol officer saw him and the runaway vehicle and decided to use his patrol car to stop the vehicle. Once the suspect’s vehicle was stopped, the officer chased after the suspect. During the foot pursuit, the suspect dropped a loaded handgun in the roadway.
Felony Battery Arrest
On July 24, at 5pm, the Ventura Police Department Command Center received a 911 call of several subjects physically fighting outside of the El Rey Cantina, 294 E. Main St. It was reported one subject was a security guard. When officers arrived on scene, a large crowd was gathered in front of the bar and several subjects were still fighting. Once all the involved parties were separated, officers found that the bar’s security guard, later identified as Joseph Marasa, had sustained a serious facial injury.
During the investigation, officers learned the victim was attempted to keep an intoxicated subject from entering the bar. Several of the subject’s friends, later identified as 29 year of Ventura resident Brandon Gutierrez and 26 year old Ventura resident Eriberto Alvarez, were already inside the bar, so the subject was refusing to leave. While the victim was detaining the subject out front, Gutierrez and Alvarez walked outside and started physically assaulting the victim. After the fight, Alvarez attempted to leave the scene, but was detained by arriving officers.
The victim sustained several facial fractures during the altercation. He was treated at the scene by Ventura City Fire personnel and later transported to CMH for treatment of his injuries.
Gutierrez and Alvarez were both arrested and later booked into the Ventura County Jail for felony battery, causing serious injuries.
Felony Hit & Run Traffic Collision & DUI Arrest
On July 27, at approximately 6:15pm, the Ventura Police Department received a 911 call reporting a traffic collision at the intersection of Dean Drive and College Drive. One of the drivers had reportedly left the scene after the collision. As officers responded, witnesses reported that the suspect vehicle was stopped on the street at the intersection of Dean Drive and Chapel Drive.
Ventura City Fire personnel arrived on scene and located the driver of the suspect vehicle, identified as 38 year old Ventura resident Paul Wilson. Officers arrived and after further investigation learned that Wilson had been involved in the collision and failed to stop at the scene. He was also determined to be driving under the influence of alcohol.
The victim of the hit and run collision was injured during the collision and was treated at the scene. Wilson was arrested for felony hit and run as well as driving under the influence of alcohol.
Commercial Burglary
On July 28, at approximately 2am, VPD officers responded to a report of a fight at the Four Points Sheraton hotel with security officers fighting with the suspect. Officers arrived and found security restraining Kevin Lynch (Lynch is a Post release offender (PRCS) Pursuant to AB109.
Hotel staff informed officers that Lynch climbed onto the balcony of a hotel room. Lynch attempted to break into the hotel room but was confronted by the resident in the room. Lynch then climbed onto a second balcony and forced his way into another room. The hotel guest had to physically remove Lynch from his room.
At the Four Points Sheraton, Lynch used several screwdrivers to pry/force his way into a room occupied by a female. The female was on the phone with the front desk as Lynch opened the door. Hotel security confronted Lynch as he kicked the door to the room breaking the security latch. Hotel security physically restrained Lynch until officers arrived.
