Two Wanted Suspects Arrested Thursday

Santa Barbara Sheriff’s detectives tracked a wanted suspect to a Pismo Beach hotel room on Thursday, finding three suspects in possession of methamphetamine. On the same day, authorities arrested an unrelated suspect wanted in multiple states for drug possession and child trafficking.

Joanna Savoy, 35, was wanted for violating the terms of her parole, said Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Kelly Hoover in a press release. Savoy had been convicted of possessing a controlled substance for sale. Launching an investigation into her whereabouts, detectives discovered she was staying at a hotel in Pismo Beach.

Detectives found Savoy and Vanessa Vasquez, 30 — both of Santa Maria — with methamphetamine, as well as about $2,300 in cash. They also found evidence “indicating the suspects were selling the narcotics,” said Hoover. Both were booked into San Luis Obispo County Jail. According to Hoover, Vasquez was a parolee currently out on bail from San Luis Obispo County for an unrelated felony.

Thirty-year-old Clarissa Bautista, also of Santa Maria, who was also in the hotel room, was cited for having a usable amount of methamphetamine and a hypodermic needle. Detectives concluded that the other, an unidentified male, was not violating any laws, according to Hoover.

Also on Thursday, authorities arrested Bernell Quillens, who was wanted in multiple states. Quillens, 35, of Marin, was stopped for a minor traffic violation at Highway 101 and Union Valley Parkway in Santa Maria. He was wanted in Georgia for drug possession and in Texas for “trafficking of a child for sexual purposes,” Hoover said in the press release.

Quillens was arrested and booked into Santa Barbara County Jail. According to Hoover, authorities determined that the traffic stop was unrelated to the primary investigation.