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Missing Person, Trampled Transient, and Copper Cable Caper

Three Reports from the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department


Thursday, June 5, 2008
By Chris Meagher (Contact)
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Mentally Ill Man Missing Since April 10

The Santa Barbara Sheriff's Department is looking for a mentally ill, 57-year-old man who has been missing since April 10. George Snyder Jr. was reported missing from his Ellwood Beach apartment in Goleta, and hasn't been seen or heard from since June 1.

George Snyder, Jr.

He is described as a white male, about 5’7”, 160 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes. He isn't believed to have take his medication in several months, and frequents the downtown Goleta area, often using public transportation.

Anyone with information on Snyder should call 681-4150.

Attacked I.V. Homeless Man Clings to Life

Detectives from the Santa Barbara Sheriff's Department are trying to determine what happened to a 53-year-old transient who appeared to be physically assaulted on May 31, and remains on life support at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital as a result of his injuries.

Deputies were called to the Isla Vista Neighborhood Clinic on a report of an injured subject early in the morning, May 31, and arrived to find Gregory Ghan severely beaten and having sustained multiple injuries.

Ghan, known to be a transient living in the I.V. area, was taken to Cottage, where he was placed on life support. Because of his condition, authorities have been unable to question him on the circumstances surrounding his injuries, or to provide a description of a potential attacker.

Authorities are encouraging anyone with information on what might have happened to Ghan to call 681-4162 or 681-4150 and ask for Det. Waits.

Copper Cable Thief Arrested

A man was arrested on June 2 for grand theft after a two-month Santa Barbara Sheriff's Department investigation into the theft of copper wire telephone cable from a Verizon facility in Goleta.

Greg Contreras

Greg Contreras, 49, allegedly stole more than $10,000 in copper cable from the facility at 424 South Patterson Avenue. Authorities believed the thefts were being committed by a person familiar with the facility, after it appeared the person had entered a fenced yard at least seven times, either stealing or damaging wire each time. Contreras is a former employee of Verizon and was a sub-contractor for them during the time of the thefts.

Contreras was booked in Santa Barbara County Jail on $150,000 bail.

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Our community should be prepared for many more horrific stories about the consequences of not caring for the mentally ill. It does not take a great imagination to start to connect the dots... no funding for care = homelessness and community tragedies.

outragedbyignorance (anonymous profile)
June 6, 2008 at 7:44 a.m. (Suggest removal)

The above comment is of course based on the assumption that a mentally ill person perptrated the attrocity on the mentally ill man.

I would agree if the guy had actually done something wrong. He was just being himself - likely drug or alcohol addiction, or mental illness - and the answer for that is AA, not my tax dollars with SB Mental health. You can't legislate someone to take their meds. Sure if a person is seriously helpless then the govt should treat him. But seriously, have you met the homeless face to face? I think maybe 50 percent of the homeless out there are mentally ill - the rest are drug related.

It always leaves me shaking my head how the government is supposed to take care of people. I am "outraged by the ignorance" of people who defer their responsibility to the community on the government. You feeling bad for the homeless guy? How about going out to meet with him? Give him some food. Give him a bible, a pair of socks. Go pray with him. Roll up your sleeves and stop your liberal whining and do something about it yourself.

And keep your hands out of my pocket.

tallsipowater (anonymous profile)
June 6, 2008 at 8:03 a.m. (Suggest removal)

outragedbyignorance, tallsipowater, What are y'all talking about? The mentally ill guy in the above story is missing, not homeless. The homeless guy in the other story was beaten up, not mentally ill or drunk, based on the information given.

Nitz (anonymous profile)
June 6, 2008 at 11:01 a.m. (Suggest removal)

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