Oceanside CA— Early this morning, March 1, 2016, an Oceanside Police Officer attempted to stop a vehicle on Calle Los Santos for vehicle code violations. The vehicle fled and a pursuit was initiated.
The vehicle went east on North River Rd and north on Sleeping Indian. The vehicle drove off the road way in the 1500 block of Sleeping Indian where the driver fled, leaving a passenger behind. The passenger was contacted by police and three firearms were located in the vehicle (two semi-auto handguns and a shotgun).
Sheriff’s Department began a track for the outstanding suspect utilizing a K-9. SDSO canine ultimately found the driver hiding in the 1400 block of Wilshire. The driver was taken into custody.
As this incident was unfolding, OPD dispatch received a separate 9-1-1 call from a victim in the 400 block of Sleeping Indian claiming false imprisonment. Officers contacted the victim who stated he had been held at gunpoint for several hours by a stranger armed with a shotgun and handgun.
The victim said he was by himself in an acquaintance’s trailer when a suspect entered and held him against his will for unknown reasons. Eventually, the suspect left the trailer and the victim was able to escape on foot and call police. The victim was uninjured.
The investigation revealed that the suspect left the house and got into the vehicle (as a passenger) listed above. An Oceanside Police Officer conducted the traffic stop (for the vehicle code violation) unaware the occupants were just involved in the false imprisonment incident.
The names of suspects are being withheld at this time as the investigation is still ongoing.