Detectives with the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department have released a sketch of a suspect from last week’s shooting on Refugio Road that left a San Luis Obispo County man with a wound to his leg.
The 27-year-old victim said he was driving to the beach in the area of Refugio Road and Highway 101 about 12:40 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 26, when a man on the side of the road flagged him down for help. He says the man told him his truck had broken down and he needed water for the engine. The victim had water in his car and agreed to drive the motorist to his truck, less than a half-mile up Refugio Road.
The victim said that when they reached the truck, he parked behind it and both men got out of the car, and that’s when the suspect asked for money.
The victim said he told the man he didn’t have any, so the suspect pulled out a handgun and shot the victim in the leg. The suspect got into his truck and drove back down Refugio Road.
The victim used his cell phone to call 9-1-1 and waited in his car until law enforcement and paramedics arrived. He was taken to the hospital and was treated for the non-life-threatening injury.
The victim described the suspect’s vehicle as a bright red U.S-made pickup truck built in 2005 or later. The suspect was described as a white male in his mid- to late-30s, 5 feet 10 inches to 6 feet tall, 175 to 180 pounds and light brown hair. He was wearing blue jeans and a faded maroon shirt.
Sheriff’s detectives have released an artist’s rendering of the suspect. Anyone with information about the suspect is asked to call sheriff’s detectives at 805.681.4150 or the Sheriff’s Anonymous Tip Line at 805.681.4171.
— Drew Sugars is a public information officer for the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department.