On Thursday, February 29, 2024, at about 5:35 PM, two adult male subjects entered a clothing retail establishment in the 1300 block of S. Broadway.
One of the subjects left the business without paying for several pairs of Levi jeans valued at approximately $500.00. Store loss prevention personnel attempted to detain the suspect and his associate in the parking lot.
The suspect with the jeans made verbal threats to shoot the loss prevention staff and simulated having a firearm to complete the theft. Store employees disengaged and notified police. The suspect and his associate fled with the stolen property.
Santa Maria Police Department (SMPD) patrol officers responded to the investigation, and the case was later turned over to the Detective Bureau – Property Crimes Unit. The ensuing investigation includnig surveillance video led to the suspect in this case being identified as 30-year-old Lompoc resident, Gabriel Contreras.
With assistance from the Lompoc Police Department, SMPD Detectives located and arrested Contreras in Lompoc on Monday, March 4, 2024.
Contreras was confrimed to have just been released from prison on February 23, 2024, and ordered to be on supervised probation.
Contreras was booked into the Santa Barbara County Jail on robbery and probation violation charges. This case was forwarded to the Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s Office for filing.
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lol
When did they begin enforcing the laws on thievery in this state?
Long before Texas, which has a $2,500 threshold for a felony theft. That’s more than 2.5 x more than CA’s felony limit. So………