Paso woman snatched keys from emergency room patient, then stole her car, CHP says
A Paso Robles woman was arrested after snatching keys from a woman waiting in a hospital emergency room and stealing her car, the CHP said.
The victim was waiting in the emergency room at Twin Cities Community Hospital in Templeton at approximately 9:35 a.m. Friday when she realized someone might have walked past her and taken the keys to her 2016 Ford Fiesta, according to a CHP news release.
When the victim went outside, she noticed her car wasn’t in the parking lot, the CHP said.
CHP officers “arrived at the hospital within minutes” and determined that the suspect, identified as 50-year-old Bella Micheline Eliana Saltaerilli, had been in the emergency room the previous evening, according to the news release. The person had reportedly provided an address at the Motel 6 in Atascadero.
Officers from the CHP, Atascadero Police Department and San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office found the suspect in a room at the motel along with the keys to the stolen vehicle and several personal items taken from the car, the CHP said.
Authorities arrested Saltaerilli on suspicion of vehicle theft, grand theft auto and possession of stolen property.
She was being held at San Luis Obispo County Jail in lieu of $20,000 as of Monday morning.
This story was originally published March 9, 2020 at 10:42 AM.
