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Deputies don't go far to bust miscreant

 

An El Verano resident, living just around the corner from the Sheriff's Valley substation, landed in jail twice in the span of three days on a plethora of charges.

At around 11 p.m. on Aug. 31, deputies were called to a residence in the 19000 block of Linden Avenue to investigate a report of suspicious circumstances. There they made contact with two men and, while conducting a pat-down search of one of them, discovered some prescription medication that was lacking a proper label. After discovering that both men were on probation and subject to search, the deputies went on to explore the residence.

That's when the scope of the investigation took on a whole new dimension. In the home they found syringes and other drug paraphernalia, ammunition for a shotgun, .9 grams of suspected cocaine, .23 grams of suspected methamphetamine, personal papers belonging to a third party and a digital scale with drug residue. Outside the home they found a vehicle stolen from the Santa Rosa area and stolen license plates from Sonoma.

The deputies arrested Seth Ostram, 31, of Sonoma, on charges of felony theft of a vehicle, felony receiving known stolen property, felony possession of a controlled substance (cocaine), felony possession of a controlled substance (methamphetamine), being a prohibited person owning ammunition and a probation violation.

That was round one. Then, at about 4:03 a.m. on Sept. 3, Sheriff's deputies re-arrested Ostram when they spotted some suspected drug activity in the 19000 block of Linden Avenue.

The deputies, who were on foot, instructed Ostram to drive up to them. When he did, they searched him again and discovered some more prescription medication that wasn't properly labeled and a Leatherman Multi-Tool, which violated terms of his probation which prohibited possession of a weapon. The Multi-Tool has a knife blade.

Deputies also found a syringe in Ostram's vehicle and conducted a probation search of his residence.

Ostram was re-arrested and charged with felony possession of narcotics, committing a felony while out on bail and a probation violation.

A second person was also arrested, a 31-year-old El Verano resident who was charged with being under the influence of a controlled substance.

In other incidents reported to local law enforcement:

Thursday, Sept. 1:

1:20 p.m. - Goodbye HP laptop. A resident in the 17000 block of Keaton Avenue reported that her home was burglarized and that a thief had made off with an HP laptop computer worth $2,000. There was no sign of forced entry.

9:15 p.m. - Text message SOS. Deputies were sent to a residence in the 400 block of West Agua Caliente Road on the report of a domestic violence incident called in by a third-party, who was receiving text messages from the victim who wrote that her husband was drunk and throwing things.

The deputies contacted the parties and found that a verbal altercation had turned physical. They arrested the 34-year-old husband on charges of misdemeanor domestic violence, misdemeanor damaging a wireless device and a probation violation.

Sunday, Sept. 4:

11:01 a.m. - Auto vandalism. A resident in the 500 block of Cherry Lane reported that, for no apparent reason, someone smashed the rear driver's side windows on two cars.

Tuesday, Sept. 6:

9:12 a.m. - Familiarity breeds arrest. While watching traffic in the 8000 block of Sonoma Highway in Kenwood, deputies saw a familiar face in a passing vehicle, so they followed the female driver to the local gas station, made contact and requested permission to search the vehicle. The driver consented and deputies found a pipe used to smoke methamphetamine and a plastic container with a little more than 4 grams of methamphetamine inside. Deputies cited Kathy Lee Stovall, 31, of Sonoma, on felony charges of possession of a controlled substance and misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia.

7:08 p.m. - Expensive vacation. A resident in the 18000 block of Wagele Drive reported a burglary had taken place while she was on vacation. On her return, she said, the person who was watching the house reported finding the front door forced open. Missing were various pieces of electronic equipment and jewelry worth more than $14,000.

Wednesday, Sept. 7:

10:55 a.m. - Another expensive break-in. A resident in the 1100 block of London Ranch Road reported that someone entered the residence by unknown means and stole Native American artifacts, jewelry and an older computer. The missing items were valued at $8,000.

4:24 p.m. - Unlocked door, 30 minutes, $2,000. A resident in the 100 block of La Mancha Drive reported that while he was gone for about 30 minutes, someone entered his residence and stole men's jewelry worth an estimated $2,000. Entry was made through a sliding back door that was unlocked.

Thursday, Sept. 8:

7:30 a.m. - How high did your garden grow? Detectives from the Sheriff's Narcotics Unit chopped down a marijuana grow in the 2700 block of Johns Hill Road. The detectives found 137 flowering plants that were 3-feet-to-4-feet tall. The grow was destroyed.