New Atwater police unit nets three arrests, recovers stolen car, weapon, drugs
Three people were arrested, a stolen car was recovered, and a large knife and small amounts of drugs were confiscated Saturday as part of a new effort by the Atwater Police Department to target “known criminals” in “high-profile crime areas” of the city, Lt. Samuel Joseph said Monday.
A temporary two-officer team has been given the green light to work specifically on reducing criminal activity in areas with high crime rates, such as the Camelia Mobile Home Park on Atwater Boulevard where officers have investigated shootings and other gang-related cases.
“We’re hoping to make this a permanent unit that will go after those areas and go after people with warrants,” Joseph told the Sun-Star.
Officers David Walker and Levi Crain worked together Saturday, normally their day off, to search for people wanted on warrants in various neighborhoods. They made three arrests and confiscated a “large, fixed-blade knife,” along with more than 2 grams of suspected methamphetamine and more than 40 grams of marijuana, Joseph said.
Pedro R. Rangel, 33, was spotted in the area of Grove Avenue and Winton Way. Rangel, who was on probation in connection with multiple drug-related cases, was carrying the weapon concealed in his waistband, according to police. He was arrested and booked into the John Latorraca Correctional Facility without bail on the weapon-possession allegation and alleged probation violation, authorities said.
Rangel has been in and out of the county jail since 2012 on a series of mostly drug-related charges, according to Merced County jail records.
Samuel Rojas was booked and released on suspicion of being under the influence of a controlled substance. Rojas, 33, was sentenced to prison in 2013 for cultivating marijuana for sale. He was released on community parole under the terms of AB 109, the Public Safety Realignment Act, according to jail records.
He was found allegedly under the influence of drugs in a room at the Valley Motel on Sycamore Avenue, police said.
The officers also spotted a vehicle that had been reported stolen in the area of Shaffer Road and Atwater Boulevard. The driver, Tito R. Lara, was arrested, and police found suspected methamphetamine and marijuana inside the car, Joseph said.
Lara, 40, was booked into the John Latorraca Correctional Facility on suspicion of vehicle theft, transporting a controlled substance and transporting marijuana for sale, all felonies, along with misdemeanor drug possession allegations. He remained in custody Monday with bail set at $58,000, according to booking records.
This story was originally published June 20, 2016 at 5:35 PM with the headline "New Atwater police unit nets three arrests, recovers stolen car, weapon, drugs."