Law and Disorder 3-5
The majority of the Tea Fire Ten made their first appearance in court 3/3. Each faces two misdemeanor charges for trespassing and starting a campfire without a permit. Investigators were unable to link the bonfire with the Tea Fire beyond a reasonable doubt, and consequently did not charge the 10 with causing the fire. The arraignment has been continued until 3/17 when pleas will be entered. (/teafire35)
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Two homeless people were found dead on 3/3, bringing the number of street people who’ve died this year to 11. Police confirmed finding the bodies of a 55-year-old man and a woman in her thirties in an old school bus parked near Anacapa and Helena streets. The suspicion is that the two-known to other homeless people only as “Easy” and Anita-died from carbon monoxide poisoning from a gas generator used to heat the bus. (/homeless35)
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Far West Gun Supply, located at 2009 State St., was robbed 3/2. According to a S.B. Police press release, the business’s glass front door was shattered and the security bars cut. The owners reported that approximately 30 handguns were stolen after an inventory check. Anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact police at 897-2335. (/guns35)
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Two principals of Westridge Capital Management-Stephen Walsh, 64, and Paul Greenwood, 61-were arrested 2/25 for embezzling more than $500 million in investor funds. Both men were charged with securities fraud, wire fraud, and conspiracy. According to a Securities Exchange Commission complaint, Walsh and Greenwood have been using client money “to furnish lavish and luxurious lifestyles” since 1996. Employees at Westridge’s Carrillo Street office declined to comment. (/westridge35)
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The Sheriff’s Department is asking for the public’s help in apprehending a man who robbed the Rabobank on Calle Real on 2/27. A man entered the bank and handed a teller a note demanding money. Witnesses described the man as being white, six feet tall, with a “surfer tan.” Those with information are asked to call 681-4168. (/rabobank35)
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Actor and talk show host Gary Collins pled no contest on 3/2 to a misdemeanor charge of driving under the influence. Authorities allege Collins had a blood-alcohol level of 0.29, more than three times the legal limit. The charge was his third DUI offense, meaning Collins must serve 120 days in custody. Collins, 70, was arrested 1/31 in Summerland after authorities pulled him over for driving “erratically.”
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The names of two victims in recent fatal accidents have been released. Mary Ostrand, 58, was identified as the victim of the 2/16 house fire at 3918 Foothill Road. The coroner has not yet released the exact cause of her death. Robert Ward Keeler, 67, was named as the man who was struck and killed on 2/2 by an MTD bus near the corner of Figueroa and De la Vina steets.
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An autopsy report released last week revealed that Aline Christina Martins, a Santa Barbara resident who died 2/16 during a snowboarding accident in Tuolumne County, died of hypothermia, not suffocation, as had been previously speculated. (/martins35)
