Sonoma County Sheriff’s Deputies arrested two warrant suspects who were found hiding under a house this morning. The incident began at about 5:30 AM when deputies went to a home in the 1200 block of Grand Ave in Santa Rosa looking for a suspect wanted for a felony warrant.
When deputies knocked on the front door they heard a large commotion inside the home. A deputy who had positioned himself to the rear of the home observed a lot of movement at the rear of the home and ultimately made contact with the occupants in a rear portion of the house. The occupants told the deputies that the wanted suspect was not in the home but the deputies heard movement under the house.
The deputies looked into an exterior vent and saw one man in the crawl space under the home next to the vent. The deputy recognized him as 47-year-old Petaluma resident Steven Molina who had a $30,000 arrest warrant for assault with a deadly weapon. When the deputy attempted to negotiate with Molina, Molina crawled away, refusing to cooperate or come out.
As Molina moved away, the deputy spotted another person under the home who was with Molina. She was identified as 30-year-old Santa Rosa resident Jessica Ybarra who had a $50,000 arrest warrant for vehicle theft and numerous drug charges. Ybarra cooperated with the deputies and came out a crawl space in the home and was taken into custody without incident.
Molina continued to defy the deputies and made threats to kill deputies, kill a police canine and kill himself if they came in to get him. Occupants of the home told deputies he was armed with a knife when he fled under the home.
Based on his threats and his ability to carry them out, the Sheriff’s SWAT Team and hostage negotiators responded to the home and attempted to get him to come out. When Molina refused to come out, a hole was cut in the floor above Molina. Molina attempted to fight deputies but he was taken into custody quickly at about 7:00 AM. Molina was transported and booked into the Sonoma County Jail on a charge of threatening deputies along with his warrant.
Prepared by: Sgt. Spencer Crum
Media Inquiries: 707-565-3941
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