[Updated: Tue., Oct. 21, 2025, 11:15am]
A Santa Barbara police officer was injured Saturday evening while attempting to detain a man suspected of vehicle theft, marking yet another encounter with law enforcement for the suspect, 24-year-old Kevin Benitez-Carbajal.
According to an October 19 press release from the Santa Barbara Police Department, officers were patrolling the 1100 block of Mercedes Lane on October 18 at approximately 6:54 p.m. when they located a possible stolen vehicle in a shared parking lot. Officers approached on foot and identified the lone occupant of the vehicle as Benitez-Carbajal.
“Immediately upon contact, the driver attempted to elude capture by reversing the vehicle out of the parking stall,” the department stated. One officer was struck by the vehicle, sustaining minor injuries.
Police deployed a “conducted energy device” — a Taser — to subdue Benitez-Carbajal, who was then taken into custody after what officers described as “a brief struggle.” The injured officer was treated and released from Cottage Hospital.
Benitez-Carbajal was booked into Santa Barbara County Jail on multiple felony and misdemeanor charges. His bail was initially set at $500,000 but is currently listed as “no bail.”
On Tuesday morning, the Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s Office filed nine felony counts against Benitez-Carbajal, including assault on a peace officer with a deadly weapon, battery causing injury to a peace officer, vandalism, resisting an officer, and taking a vehicle without consent. The complaint also includes a special allegation of serious felony and outlines numerous aggravating factors, such as great bodily harm, use of force, and the defendant’s extensive criminal record. He is expected in court this morning.
This is not his first entanglement with the law. Court records show a history of convictions and charges dating back to minor vehicle infractions in 2018, with offenses escalating from 2020 through 2022. His record includes vehicle theft, drug possession, possession of a controlled substance while armed, and felony hit-and-run resulting in injury or death. In 2022, he was sentenced to two years in state prison after pleading guilty to the latter charge, ultimately serving just under 200 days.
At the time of his latest arrest, Benitez-Carbajal was under active community supervision, following a reinstated custody term in June of this year.
The investigation is ongoing.
