Three men have been charged with Thomas Fire-related thefts in Santa Barbara County this week, including the allegation of stealing firefighter gear directly from a mutual aid crew.
Joshua Raymond Campbell, 18, of Carpinteria, and Michyl Zecharyah Jordan, 25, of Santa Barbara, were charged with possession of stolen property, worth more than $950, belonging to the Manteca Fire Department, the Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s Office said.
Both men were arrested by the Santa Barbara Police Department Monday after a pursuit involving a stolen vehicle that ended in a collision and foot pursuit, SBPD spokesman Anthony Wagner said.
“The gear was stolen (Sunday night) from firefighters from the city of Manteca Fire Department while they rested from a hard day’s word on the front lines of the Thomas Fire,” Wagner said in a news release.
Campbell and Jordan were also charged with possession of stolen property with a value under $950 from Alpha Thrift and possession of burglary tools, both misdemeanors, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
Campbell was charged with additional felony and misdemeanor crimes, including: unlawful taking of a vehicle; evading an officer with willful disregard; leaving the scene of an accident causing injury; hit and run driving; resisting or delaying a peace officer; possession of drug paraphernalia; and driving without a license.
Jordan was charged with giving false information to a police officer.
On Thursday, the District Attorney’s office filed a criminal charge against a Lompoc man accused of burglary in an area evacuated during the Thomas Fire.
Adam James Smith, 32, of Lompoc, was charged with residential burglary and is accused of burgling a property on the 1000 block of Channel Drive in Montecito.
He was arrested Tuesday by Santa Barbara County sheriff’s deputies, with assistance from law enforcement officers providing mutual aid to patrol evacuated areas, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
According to the sheriff’s department, deputies responded to a report of a burglary in progress after the alarm went off and the on-site property manager reviewed surveillance video.
The property manager saw a stranger on the property and called 9-1-1, sheriff’s spokeswoman Kelly Hoover said.
The suspect was identified as Smith, and he was booked on charges on residential burglary and four outstanding warrants, and was held without bail, Hoover said at the time of his arrest.
All three men were scheduled to be arraigned this week in Santa Barbara County Superior Court.
Last week, a man was arrested for allegedly attempting to steal a bicycle from a property that was evacuated due to the Thomas Fire.
Cesar Flores, 31, was arrested on suspicion of entering a disaster area, loitering, possessing burglary tools, and being under the influence of a controlled substance in public.
Flores was spotted on the 600 block of El Bosque Road around 6:30 a.m. Dec. 11, by some firefighters, according to the sheriff’s department.
Flores allegedly fled the area when firefighters tried to contact him, and law enforcement officers later located and arrested him, Hoover said.
— Noozhawk managing editor Giana Magnoli can be reached at gmagnoli@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.