Man arrested following motor home pursuit, standoff in Buellton
A 56-year-old man allegedly driving a motorhome during a methamphetamine-induced psychosis was arrested after a pursuit that ended safely following a standoff in Buellton on Tuesday morning.
The incident began at 8:30 a.m. when a caller claimed she had been kidnapped and was in a motorhome traveling southbound on Highway 101, CHP Officer Kevin McCool said.
CHP officers from the Santa Maria area located the vehicle on the highway south of Orcutt.
When officers attempted to conduct a traffic stop, the driver failed to yield while continuing to travel between 60 and 70 mph south on Highway 101 where Buellton-based CHP officers took over the chase, McCool said.
Once he reached Buellton, the driver exited at Avenue of the Flags and stopped in front of the 76 gas station, where the daughter ran from the vehicle.
In addition to the adult daughter, her mother, who is deaf, was asleep on a bed in the motorhome.
As the man failed to comply with orders and officers learned he had access to knives, the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office warned residents in the area to shelter in place due to the barricaded subject.
Additionally, the Sheriff’s Office dispatched its Special Enforcement Team and Hostage Negotiation Team to the scene.
Sheriff’s deputies ultimately fired flash bangs to enter the motorhome, getting the mother and two dogs to safety before taking the man into custody, McCool said.
McCool said the family most recently had been living in the motorhome parked in Oceano.
The suspect, whose name wasn’t immediately available, was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of drugs, evading officers and kidnapping, McCool said.
As they negotiated with the subject, officers requested other vehicles and people near the scene be cleared from the area.
Several nearby roads in Buellton also were closed as a precaution during the standoff.
More than two hours after the incident began, the Sheriff’s Office lifted the shelter in place warning for Buellton residents in the area.
Noozhawk North County editor Janene Scully can be reached at jscully@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
This story was originally published November 26, 2019 at 10:35 AM.