Atwater woman arrested in home burglary case

A 24-year-old Atwater woman was arrested Tuesday in connection with a home burglary, the Atwater Police Department reported.

Raquel M. Mendez was booked into the John Latorraca Correctional Facility on suspicion of residential burglary. She was in custody Wednesday afternoon with bail set at $50,000, according to booking records.

Officers were called around 4:10 p.m. Tuesday to a home in the 1300 block of Sierra Vista Street to investigate a burglary. Numerous items were stolen from the home, including a purple bicycle, video game consoles and related equipment, some food, including ice cream, and several items of clothing and children’s toys, Lt. Samuel Joseph told the Sun-Star.

“Officer (David) Walker recalled that earlier in the day, he’d seen a woman in that area with a purple bike and other items, and knew who that woman was from previous contacts,” Joseph said.

Investigators said the officer cited Mendez earlier in the day for trespassing in the area.

“He had no reason to believe she was involved in anything else until (the burglary) was reported later,” Joseph said.

Walker and Officer Ken Lee worked together, located Mendez and recovered much of the allegedly stolen property. The officers tracked her to the 1700 block of Sycamore Avenue, where she was arrested, police said.

“They are to be commended for their initiative and police work,” Joseph said. “The initiative these officers took probably prevented many other future burglaries involving this suspect.”

Mendez has been arrested numerous times in Merced County since at least 2013 on allegations ranging from theft and trespassing to domestic violence and battery, according to booking records.

This story was originally published May 18, 2016 at 4:33 PM with the headline "Atwater woman arrested in home burglary case."