Category: keyt-local-news

Caleb Nguyen

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) – Ernestine Ygnacio-De Soto, Chumash elder and beloved community member, passed away at age 87, according to her family.

Ygnacio-De Soto, the Fiesta Grand Marshal of 2023, dedicated much of her life in Santa Barbara to providing information on the Barbañero Chumash.

This includes donations to the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, a children’s book on the Barbañero Chumash culture and a documentary called “6 Generations” on her family’s history.

Ygnacio Soto’s mother, Mary Yee, was the last first-language speaker of the Barbañero Chumash, eventually raising five children of her own.

A memorial will be set at the Old Mission on Feb. 10, starting at 9:00 a.m., leading into the afternoon for any community member who wishes to attend.

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Caleb Nguyen

GOLETA, Calif. (KEYT) – A Goleta family is seeking support after their mother was found dead in the Santa Clara River near Saticoy on January 23.

Ventura County Sheriff’s Office deputies received a call about a body in the Santa Clara River, where they later found and identified Kaylynn Herrera, a 30-year-old Goleta mother, according to the VC Star.

The VCSO air unit took Herrera’s body to the Ventura County Medical Examiner’s Office where they later identified her, according to the VC Star.

Herrera’s family now seeks financial support to cover funeral costs and further help of her children. A link to the family’s GoFundMe page can be found here.

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Caleb Nguyen

SOLVANG, Calif. (KEYT) – Solvang residents protested potential occupation of Greenland with songs, signs and speeches this weekend.

The rally helped the community quell any distressed feelings over current political activity.

Above is a video on the event.

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Caleb Nguyen

SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. (KEYT) – A San Luis Obispo County jury found Angel Ramos Ramirez, 31, guilty of second-degree murder against Daniel Diaz, according to the SLO County DA’s Office.

The jury also found that Ramos Ramirez committed the murder for the Santa Maria-based West Park criminal street gang and that he used a knife in the killing, according to the SLOCDAO.

Ramos Ramirez stabbed Diaz 10 times in Oceano in the early morning hours on June 4, 2022, according to the SLOCDAO.

Ramos Ramirez also had a previous conviction for criminal threats for the benefit of the same West Park gang dating back to 2016, qualifying as a strike under state law, according to the SLOCDAO.

Ramos Ramirez also used a knife on a juvenile victim during a Jan. 29 assault this year, another case where a judge found him guilty, according to the SLOCDAO.

The court tried Ramos Ramirez for the murder first, but both crimes used a knife and were charged in the same complaint, according to the SLOCDAO.

Evidence found that Ramos Ramirez caused great bodily injury after he stabbed a teenager during a party in Nipomo on Sept. 4, 2021, nine months before he murdered Diaz, according to the SLOCDAO.

Ramos Ramirez is scheduled for sentencing on April 28 later this year where he faces a maximum sentence of 41 years to life in state prison, according to the SLOCDAO.

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Caleb Nguyen

SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. (KEYT) – San Luis Obispo Police are searching for an attempted robber from a Home Depot just after 5:00 p.m. Sunday.

The man attempted to steal over $1,800 in merchandise before a struggle ensued, and he eventually fled to Whole Foods, according to the SLOPD.

The man changed his clothes at Whole Foods and drove off in a dark sedan, wearing a gray shirt, jeans, and black shoes, according to the SLOPD.

Those who can help identify the man are asked to call Officer LaDow or Crime Stoppers.

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Caleb Nguyen

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) – The Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s Office announced felony charges filed against Segun Ogunleye Feb. 2 after a public funds fraud investigation.

Ogunleye, 34, is a custody sergeant in the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office on administrative leave after 114 criminal counts of misappropriation of public funds, among other crimes, according to the SBCDAO.

Ogunleye’s other crimes include grand theft, presentation of fraudulent claims, false entries in records and money laundering with the enhancement of excessive losses due the amount taken, according to the SBCDAO.

Ogunyele appeared in court on Feb. 2 and his arraignment was continued to March 2 after being released by the Court, according to the SBCDAO.

Ogunyele was held on $150,000 bail at the Ventura County Jail following his arrest on Jan. 29, according to the SBCDAO.

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Caleb Nguyen

VENTURA, Calif. (KEYT) – Ventura Police arrested three local 16-year-olds Monday morning for their roles in an attempted murder last month near Seaward Avenue and Pierpoint Boulevard.

All three teens and the victim attended a gathering when the three threatened the victim at gunpoint, according to the VPD.

The victim escaped and told VPD officers about the incident after one of the suspects shot a gun towards them, according to the VPD.

VPD officers found evidence of the shooting and identified the three suspects. Ventura County Sheriff’s Office and Oxnard SWAT Teams helped the VPD SWAT team in their search.

VPD officers booked a 16-year-old girl on the following charges:

attempted murder

robbery

assault with a deadly weapon

false imprisonment

conspiracy to commit a crime

minor in possession of a firearm

criminal gang enhancement

Two other 16-year-old Ventura boys received bookings on the following charges:

robbery

assault with a deadly weapon

false imprisonment

conspiracy to commit a crime

criminal gang enhancement

Anyone with additional information is asked to contact the VPD at the following number.

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Beth Farnsworth

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) – Back-to-back videos of one, possibly two, recent mountain lion visits to neighborhoods in Samarkand are making the rounds in Santa Barbara.

Darren Moody shared his video with Your News Channel.

“My wife called and she said, “Oh my god!” And I was like, “What??” She said, “Have you seen the camera?”

Courtesy: Darren Moody

Moody said when he look at the family’s security footage last Friday morning, he was just as shocked as his wife. The camera perched on their home on Romaine Drive captured what appeared to be a large, full-size cougar.

Moody said the startling thing about the mountain lion visit was the time — it was 7:00 a.m. last Friday morning, in broad daylight. The family lives roughly a mile from Oak Park.

“It came up right through this area (below backyard) and then went up the driveway,” said Moody. “And, thank goodness for the security camera. Anybody that has these cameras knows it’s not uncommon to see a opossum or a raccoon something like that but this in particular was startling cuz of the size of the cat!”

Moody shared his video with neighbors, who posted it on Nextdoor.

“It seemed really comfortable so that was the disturbing part to me. Hopefully we don’t see it again but it’s definitely exciting!”

A half mile away, a second video taken by a different home security camera shows another large mountain lion sauntering along Vernon Road near Santa Anita Road. Vernon Road parallels Mission Creek, where the De La Vina Bridge Project is taking place.

Your News Channel has not spoken to that resident but it appears that image was taken about 2:00 a.m. It is unclear what day and if it’s the same cougar.

Video of another mountain lion was captured walking along Vernon Road in 2021.

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Jarrod Zinn

LOMPOC, Calif. (KEYT) – The Lompoc Public Library is receiving a prestigious grant that brings its history full circle.The Carnegie Corporation is giving $10,000 grants to libraries this year.

“We are allowed to use it however will benefit the community and the library the most,” says Sarah Bleyl, library director for the City of Lompoc.

The City of Lompoc’s Public Library system has existed for 115 years, having first been opened here at the building which now houses the Lompoc Museum, courtesy of the same $10,000 Carnegie Corporation grant. 

“The library was important to the community back in 1910, when they got the grant from Carnegie,” says Bleyl.

The library moved to its current location at 501 E. North Avenue in 1968.

“I do know that when they were building this library, that people were upset that it was so far outside of town, if you can imagine that,” says Bleyl. “It was a little controversial because everything around us didn’t exist back in 1968 when they picked this site.”

Andrew Carnegie called libraries the “cradles of democracy.”

Lompoc’s public library director Sarah Bleyl says libraries have been adapting to the times in recent years, and that this grant will further bolster those adaptations.

“E-books are really popular,” says Bleyl. “So about, I don’t know, 25% of our checkouts come from e-books and e-audiobooks. So even if you’re not physically here at the library, you’re still using the library. And we are busier than ever. So libraries aren’t going anywhere.”

The grants come as the nation celebrates the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence this year.

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Patricia Martellotti

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) – The Santa Barbara Foundation is inviting local nonprofits to apply for its 2026 grant programs.

The funding is designed to support organizations that provide essential services across the county, including food security, health care, housing, youth programs, the environment, and the arts.

Judith Smith-Meyer, Director of Marketing & Communications for the foundation, said the grants aim to “support all the organizations in our county that are providing services to our communities—services that uplift, improve lives, and ensure health and opportunity.”

Deadlines vary by program and have changed from previous years. Nonprofits seeking more information or application details should visit SBFoundation.org.

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