Sex Offender Arrested After Cutting off GPS Anklet

A registered sex offender who authorities think cut off his GPS monitoring device last Wednesday was arrested on Friday and is being held in Santa Barbara County Jail.

The state parole office alerted area law enforcement last week that 53-year-old Albert Lee Allen was suspected of cutting off his anklet near Highway 101 and Highway 246 in Buellton. He fell off the radar, and his whereabouts were unknown.

But at around 4 p.m. on Friday, an off-duty sheriff’s deputy was walking his dog in the 600 block of Central Avenue in Buellton when he saw Allen walk onto the street from a nearby driveway. The deputy recognized Allen from a “Be on the Lookout” alert and contacted patrol deputies.

Allen reportedly tried to flee when he saw the deputies but was apprehended after a short foot pursuit. He’s being held on a no-bail parole violation.