Detectives recovered a short-barrel assault rifle during the suspect’s arrest at a residence in L.A. and found additional weapons and ammo while serving a search warrant in Hawthorne. | Credit: Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office

Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s detectives have arrested a 22-year-old Los Angeles man in connection with a high-dollar cannabis grow burglary in Carpinteria — and are now investigating whether the case may be tied to other recent break-ins along the Foothill Road corridor.

The arrest stems from a January 17 burglary at a cannabis cultivation site in the 4000 block of Foothill Road, where authorities say hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of marijuana was stolen.

Dvaryae Bryant following his 2022 arrest in Escambia County, Florida | Credit: Escambia County Jail

Deputies responded shortly before 2 a.m., but the suspects had already fled.

Through follow-up investigation, detectives identified Dvaryae Bryant of Los Angeles as a suspect and coordinated with the Los Angeles Police Department, which was conducting a parallel investigation involving him.

Bryant was arrested February 18 at a residence in Los Angeles. During the arrest, detectives recovered a short-barrel assault rifle that Bryant allegedly threw from a window, according to the Sheriff’s Office.

A subsequent search warrant served in Hawthorne led to the recovery of approximately 15 pounds of processed cannabis, additional firearms, and thousands of dollars in cash. Bryant was booked at the Van Nuys Jail and will be extradited to Santa Barbara County on a no-bail felony warrant for burglary, conspiracy, grand theft, and a gang enhancement, authorities said.

Bryant has prior arrests and felony convictions in California and Florida. In July 2021, Costa Mesa police arrested him on suspicion of evading officers and felony firearm possession following a high-speed pursuit, according to police records. In 2022, authorities in Escambia County, Florida, arrested him on charges that included resisting arrest and discharging a firearm at a residence.



Detectives also recovered thousands of dollars in cash while serving a search warrant in Hawthorne. | Credit: Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office


Los Angeles Superior Court records show Bryant was later convicted in November 2023 of second-degree robbery and sentenced to two years in state prison. In a concurrent case, he was sentenced to 16 months for carrying a concealed weapon in a vehicle. Court records indicate he received custody credits toward those terms. In October 2025, Bryant was charged in a separate case with possession of an assault weapon and being a felon in possession of a firearm; that case remains pending.

The January 17 burglary bears notable similarities to another recent break-in along the same Foothill Road corridor.

Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Raquel Zick said detectives are reviewing whether the cases are related.

“Detectives are investigating potential links between this case and other similar burglaries in Santa Barbara County,” Zick said.

That includes the February 4 burglary at a cannabis grow in the 4500 block of Foothill Road — the early-morning incident that ended with an overturned BMW, multiple crashes, and three arrests

In that case, deputies arrested 21-year-old Abraham Bustos of Lynwood along with two 17-year-old juveniles after the suspects’ vehicle flipped near Foothill Road and Santa Monica Road. A handgun was recovered from the vehicle, and additional suspects remain outstanding.

Authorities have not confirmed whether Bryant is directly connected to the suspects arrested February 4. However, both incidents occurred within blocks of one another, involved out-of-county suspects, and targeted cannabis grow operations along the same rural corridor.

Whether the similarities point to coordination or coincidence remains under investigation.

The investigation is ongoing. Anyone with information is encouraged to contact Sheriff’s detectives at (805) 681- 4150.

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