A second suspect has been arrested in connection with the Nov. 6 stabbing of a Nipomo man outside the Chumash Casino Resort in Santa Ynez.
Osvaldo Hernandez, 35, of Santa Maria was arrested Thursday morning in the 200 block of Inger Drive after Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department detectives and Special Enforcement Team members got information that he may be hiding out in one of two homes, department spokeswoman Kelly Hoover said.
Hernandez is wanted in connection with the stabbing that left a man with serious injuries just after midnight Nov. 6. The man also had his wallet and cell phone stolen.
Hernandez allegedly led deputies on a high-speed chase with a stolen vehicle into southern San Luis Obispo County when they attempted to pull him over in Santa Maria around 5:45 p.m. that same day.
The chase ended in a crash near Grover Beach and the passenger, 29-year-old Cherie Rodriguez of Arroyo Grande, was arrested but Hernandez fled on foot, Hoover said. Authorities couldn’t locate him but gathered information about his whereabouts, which led to Thursday’s arrest.
He was arrested at gunpoint after trying to leave out the back door since he saw deputies, Hoover said.
Hernandez was booked into the Santa Barbara County Jail on $1 million bail for charges of assault with a deadly weapon, robbery, kidnapping, attempted homicide, and a gang enhancement, Hoover said.
He is a parolee for assault with a deadly weapon, felon in possession of a firearm and violation of a criminal street gang act, Hoover added.
Rodriguez is being held on $150,000 bail for charges of robbery and assault with a deadly weapon.
— Noozhawk staff writer Giana Magnoli can be reached at gmagnoli@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.