Central Coast roundup
By El Latino Newsroom
[email protected]
A second juvenile have been arrested for the knife attack on February 27, and the Santa Barbara County Sheriff Office (SBCSO), is seeking the public’s assistance for any additional information.
On Tuesday, February 27, at approximately 1:32 p.m., deputies responded to the Turnpike Shopping Center for a report of a fight in progress.
When they arrived, deputies found a male juvenile victim with a laceration to his hand, additional minors who were involved in the altercation fled prior to deputies’ arrival.
“At approximately 2:08 p.m., deputies contacted a male juvenile on Hollister, west of Turnpike Road who matched the description of a suspect involved in the assault”, said the SBCSO in a press release.
The 15-year-old male juvenile was found to be in possession of a concealed fixed blade knife. He was cited for the concealed knife as well as possession of a knife on school campus and released to a guardian. His case has been forwarded to juvenile probation.
Through their investigation, deputies identified a separate 15-year-old male juvenile as the primary suspect in the knife attack.
Deputies authored an arrested warrant for this juvenile, and it was approved by a judge. On the morning of Thursday, February 29, at approximately 11:35 a.m., deputies located the juvenile in the 100-block of S. Turnpike Road and arrested him on the warrant.
The minor was booked at the Santa Maria Juvenile Hall for attempted murder.
Deputies believe there were additional juveniles involved in this attack and are reaching out to ask anyone with information to contact them at, (805)681-4100.
If someone prefers to remain anonymous call the tip line at, (805)681-4171 or www.SBSheriff.org.
FIRST LEAP BABY
On February 29th the Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital announced that Ezra Kai Avila, was the hospital’s first Leap Year baby.
Born on February 29, at 2:19 a.m., weighing 6 pounds, 7 ounces, and measuring 19.5 inches in length, Ezra’s birth is unique as this date only occurs every four years.
Ezra’s proud parents, Veronica Ortega and Miguel Angel Avila of Goleta, were overjoyed by his arrival and as first time parents, they found Ezra’s Leap Day birth exciting and unique.
Leap Day, falling on February 29, is a unique occurrence that adds an extra day to the calendar every four years. Babies born on this rare day are affectionately recognized as «leaplings» or «leapers.”
“Cottage Health extends warm congratulations to the proud parents and their families on the arrival of their leapling,” said the Hospital to the media.
In 2023, nearly 2,000 babies were born at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital, from the Birth Center to the Mother Infant Unit, to Cottage Children’s Medical Center and Grotenhuis Pediatric Clinics, the Cottage Health staff offers care to children in all stages of their lives.
Also, the not-for-profit Cottage Health provides advanced medical care to the Central Coast region. In the past year, Cottage Health hospitals in Goleta, Santa Barbara and Santa Ynez Valley provided care for 20,201 inpatient admissions and 87,356 emergency department visits.
Learn more at cottagehealth.org/childrens.
DA ALERTS OF SCAMS
The VCSO are alerting the community in the area that scammer are targeting residents with false “missed jury duty” summons notifications.
Recently the Sheriffs Department has been alerted by several Ventura county residents who advised they were contacted by a male subject claiming to be with the sheriff’s office.
“This caller claimed they had a missed, overdue jury duty summons. When they called jury services to verify this information, they learned there were no overdue summons for them. At this time, we are unaware of any monetary demands made by this caller regarding these false claims,” the authorities said.
The VCSO states that likes to remind residents that scams of this nature occur on a regular basis and no one should not immediately respond to any demands from those purporting to be a government representative without verifying with the proper agency the legitimacy of both the individual and their requests.
The Sherriff’s Department also confirms that they do not contact people, over the phone, with requests for any payment of fines, fees, or penalties.
“It should also be noted that the Ventura County Superior Court makes missed jury duty notifications by mail, not by phone,” the VCSO said.
If anyone has suffered a financial loss due to a scam, contact Sheriff’s Dispatch at, 805.654.9511 to file a report, or file a complaint online with the Federal Trade Commission at, www.ftc.gov or the FBI at, www.ic3.gov.
