A man was taken into custody on Coast Village Road in Santa Barbara on Wednesday night after a pursuit along the South Coast, starting in Santa Barbara and weaving down toward Carpinteria and north again.
During an attempted traffic stop on Haley Street just after 7 p.m., Santa Barbara police officers recognized the car’s driver as a wanted person who had three warrants out for his arrest, Sgt. Riley Harwood said.
The vehicle fled southbound toward Carpinteria, reaching speeds of 70 miles per hour on Highway 101, according to radio traffic. At Santa Claus Lane, the vehicle got off the freeway and turned around, heading back north toward Santa Barbara around 7:20 p.m. Wednesday.
“With the assistance of the California Highway Patrol, the vehicle was stopped at Coast Village Road and Hermosillo Road and he was taken into custody,” Sgt. Aaron Baker said.
When the car pulled off the freeway on Hermosillo Road and complied with the responding officers, both occupants were arrested, Harwood said.
Leo Gomez, 37, of Santa Barbara, was arrested for the three outstanding warrants — including a court order violation and drug offenses — and six additional charges, Harwood said.
Gomez was arrested on suspicion of possession of heroin, possession of methamphetamine, possession of drug paraphernalia, false registration tags for the vehicle, evading, and driving as an addict. The last charge, part of the Vehicle Code, stemmed from Gomez’ alleged admissions to officers that he is addicted to heroin.
“He had abscesses and evidence of use, and said he used it twice a day, so he falls within this section,” Harwood said.
The three warrants had a bail amount of $30,000 and the new charges have a bail amount of $75,000.
Passenger Angela Marie Beltran, 40, of Santa Barbara, was cited and released for possession of concentrated cannabis and less than one ounce of marijuana, Harwood said.
No one was injured during the incident, police said.
— Noozhawk news editor Giana Magnoli can be reached at gmagnoli@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
