Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department deputies initiated a traffic stop just before 3 p.m. Tuesday on a 1995 Jeep Cherokee driven by Carpinteria resident Christopher Anderson, who was wanted on a probation violation.
The traffic stop was initiated at Hollister Avenue/State Street and Highway 154. A vehicle pursuit ensued as the Jeep Cherokee fled at high rate of speed, west on Hollister.
The pursuit ended a short time later as the Jeep Cherokee left the roadway onto a soft shoulder, crashing into a hedge at the front of the Faith Baptist Church at 4485 Hollister Ave.
At that same time and location, an unmarked sheriff’s detective vehicle also was involved in a minor traffic accident with another uninvolved vehicle.
As the vehicles came to rest, the suspect fled on foot down an alley way adjacent to the church, which linked the front parking lot to the rear lot. Deputies giving chase lost the suspect in the immediate vicinity and secured the surrounding area and the church, which also houses a day care.
As the day care was placed into lock-down by deputies, preparations were made to contact parents of the children and secure their safe release. At the same time, deputies secured the immediate area where they believed the suspect to be and requested additional resources. Shortly after, a sheriff’s helicopter and K9 unit was one scene and the sheriff’s SWAT Team and Hostage Negotiations Team were staged a short distance away.
The Sheriff’s SWAT Team and Hostage Negotiations Team took over the scene as detectives obtained information, which indicated the suspect was in the 4500 block of Auhay Drive. Attempts to make contact with the suspect failed. At 1:20 am, SWAT Team members made entry into the residence and located the suspect unarmed and hiding in a rear bedroom closet.
Christopher Anderson was taken into custody without further incident and booked into the Santa Barbara County Jail for a probation violation, felony evading, under the influence of a controlled substance and resisting arrest. He is being held in lieu of no bail because of his probation status.
Alex Tipolt is a sergeant with the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department.