Police charged a man in County Jail last week for home invasion and kidnapping after determining he had allegedly broken into a home in March and briefly kidnapped a foreign student living with a home-stay family.

On May 1, Richard Delgado had been at his temporary home on the 800 block of Vincente Way when the police department’s Criminal Impact Team came to arrest him for violation of parole. At his home, the team found gloves, a replica handgun, a knife, and a stolen rolling suitcase, which linked Delgado to the March case.

Richard Stephen Delgado

The 36-year-old Delgado reportedly contacted the Saudi Arabian female on March 10 outside the house where she was staying and convinced her he was performing work for the homeowner. According to Sergeant Riley Harwood, Delgado entered the house — located on East Calle Laureles — and about five minutes later the woman went into the house. Delgado allegedly then brandished a knife and a handgun and held the 28-year-old woman captive. Harwood said Delgado removed a wall safe that contained several thousand dollars’ worth of jewelry from one bedroom and took a suitcase from another. He allegedly forced the victim to load the safe into the rolling case and pull them down the street. Harwood said Delgado and the victim walked three blocks — she begged to be let go — before he finally let her go. Harwood said Delgado threatened to kill her if she told anyone about the crime. Shortly after, she contacted law enforcement.

Detective Brian Larson, part of SBPD’s Crimes Against Persons detail, linked the evidence found in May to the earlier robbery, and on May 16, booked Delgado, in jail on the parole violation, on additional charges of kidnapping, burglary, robbery, and intimidating a victim. His bail is set at $1 million.

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