A man who was behaving erratically, and allegedly threatening police officers and saying he was going to burn down a house was arrested without incident Wednesday evening on the city’s Westside, according to the Santa Barbara Police Department.
Police dispatchers received a call at about 5:30 p.m. from a resident on the 600 block of West De la Guerra Street, saying his neighbor was pointing a gun at a female while pouring gasoline inside a home, said Anthony Wagner, a police spokesman.
“During the call, it was reported that the subject was darting erratically inside and outside of the home,” Wagner said. “The subject stated he would burn the house down.”
Police and firefighters responded to the scene, a secure perimeter was established, and several nearby residences were evacuated, Wagner said.
“While the scene was being contained, the subject yelled to officers, ‘Leave or I’ll shoot you,’ as well as other threats and potential delusional statements,” Wagner said. “The suspect stated there were other subjects in the home with guns and knives, and he was doing his part to flush them out by attempting to set the home ablaze.”
The man — identified as Juan Luis Mora, 30, of Santa Barbara — continued to behave erratically, Wagner said, but police negotiators were able to convince him to surrender, and he was taken into custody at 5:35 p.m.
A search of the home turned up no guns or other people inside, but flammable liquid was found, along with narcotics and drug paraphernalia, Wagner said.
Mora was booked into Santa Barbara County Jail on suspicion of possessing narcotics and drug paraphernalia, as well as threatening police officers.
— Noozhawk executive editor Tom Bolton can be reached at tbolton@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.