Two Residents Arrested For Narcotics In Santa Maria Riverbed
Jarrod Zinn
SANTA MARIA, Calif. (KEYT) – Two people were arrested in the Santa Maria riverbed over the weekend for allegedly having drugs and ammunition.
This is an example of the multi-agency operation for keeping the riverbed cleared.
Around 8:30 Saturday morning, police officers were called to the Santa Maria riverbed to check on possible drug sales in the area.
Two residents of Santa Maria were contacted, at least one of them a transient living in the riverbed.
“Our city rangers are monitoring the riverbed on a daily basis,” says Santa Maria’s Assistant City Manager Chuen Wu. “You do see some camps in there, but it’s not nearly the extent of what we had a year ago.”
Officers say the man and the woman had more than half a pound of methamphetamine, nearly three ounces of fentanyl and other narcotics as well as ammunition for a .22-caliber firearm.
“The person that was arrested is actually a transient,” says Lt. Nate Totorica with the Santa Maria Police Department. “They don’t have a current residence. However, they’re known to be inside the city, frequent the city shop at our local businesses, and they’re contacted or have been contacted in the past several times.”
No firearm was located, but the residents were booked at the Santa Barbara County Jail on multiple violations related to narcotics and for possession of the ammunition.
“This is one aspect of public safety and but it’s also a community issue,” says Wu. “We still expend a lot of public safety resources and services on typical patrol and traffic.”
City officials say the problem of riverbed encampments is certainly better than it was a year ago, but more resources are needed to combat the issue in full.
“We ultimately want to direct people to resources if there is addiction that they’re dealing with,” says Wu. “So I think it’s a balanced approach of both helping people and applying the law.”
City leaders say they are doing their best to balance public safety with providing help and resources to those who need them, as often the core of the problem can be deeply personal.
Police and city officials encourage the public to promptly report any suspected narcotics activity.
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