Man caught trying to break into SLO County cannabis shop with a hammer, police say
.jpg "Siren")
A Santa Maria man was caught early Sunday morning trying to break into a Grover Beach cannabis shop with a hammer, the Grover Beach Police Department said.
Around 1:42 a.m. Sunday, security cameras recorded footage of Fermin Ortega Caballero, 19, trying to break the window of a cannabis retailer at the 200 block of Third Street, police said in a news release.
Security guards who were monitoring the cameras contacted Grover Beach police officers, who arrived within one minute of the call, the release said, and took Caballero into custody after he attempted to flee the scene.
“Caballero initially gave officers a false name, but was later identified and and found to have an outstanding misdemeanor arrest warrant,” police said.
Police said Caballero tried unsuccessfully to break into at least two other cannabis retailers in Grover Beach, resulting in minor damage to both businesses.
Although police did not identify the business where Sunday morning’s burglary attempt allegedly occurred, the address matches that of Urbn Leaf, which opened in Grover Beach in 2019.
Caballero arrested on suspicion of attempted burglary, impersonating another person and the misdemeanor warrant, according to police.
As of Tuesday morning, he was being held at San Luis Obispo County Jail in lieu of $30,000 bail.
According to police, the investigation into the incident is ongoing.
The Grover Beach Police Department encourages anyone with information about the attempted burglaries to contact Det. Kelly Cook at 805-473-4516 or kcook@gbpd.org.
