Roundup: Motorcyclist injured in Oxnard, embezzler sentenced, weapons seized, more news
Here's a roundup of recent incidents and announcements from Ventura County agencies:
Motorcyclist seriously injured
A motorcycle rider suffered serious injuries in a crash on South Ventura Road in Oxnard Friday morning, officials said.
The single-vehicle accident was reported shortly before 9:40 a.m. near the cross with Hill Street, said Oxnard Police Department Cmdr. Luis McArthur.
The rider, a man, was headed northbound on Ventura Road and apparently hit the raised median. He was thrown from the motorcycle and his helmet came off as he fell.
The man, whose age and city of residence weren't immediately available, was taken by ambulance to Ventura County Medical Center in critical condition, McArthur said.
No update on the rider's condition was available Friday afternoon.
Separately, a fatal crash involving a motorcycle rider was reported on Highway 33 above Ojai Friday afternoon.
Weapons seized during searches
Ventura County Sheriff's officials seized several weapons and arrested three men during warrant searches in Camarillo Tuesday.
The searches followed an investigation into a 21-year-old Camarillo man after two incidents involving weapons in late 2022.
On Sept. 7, patrol deputies with the sheriff's Camarillo station responded to a call at Take Five Cocktails where the man had allegedly brandished a knife and tried to stab a victim.
On Dec. 18, Camarillo deputies responded to a call concerning a brandished gun at Cronies Sports Grill. The same man had allegedly been caught trying to steal property from a victim's vehicle parked there. When confronted, the suspect pulled out a black handgun and pointed it directly at the victim before fleeing, according to sheriff's officials.
On Tuesday, authorities contacted the man near Paseo Camarillo and Lantana Street, where they arrested him for the earlier incidents. The man, a felon who is barred from possessing guns or ammunition, had a concealed, loaded firearm on him at the time of his arrest, authorities say.
Search warrants were then executed at two Camarillo residences, in the 500 block of Lantana Street and the 3000 block of East Barca Street.
Detectives found a loaded shotgun that the suspect had access to at the Lantana Street site. They also found evidence that reportedly connected him to nearby gang-related graffiti vandalism. A second man, 62, also at the residence was arrested on suspicion of drug violations, including having drugs for sale.
At the Barca Street site, authorities arrested a third man, 42, who had possession of an AR-15 rifle with ammunition and a nunchaku, a martial arts weapon generally illegal in California. The man is also a felon prohibited from having guns, sheriff's officials said.
The investigation was conducted by the sheriff's special enforcement unit in Camarillo, made up of five detectives.
Former office manager sentenced
The former office manager of a Conejo Valley real estate firm will spend a year in county jail and pay nearly $389,000 in remaining restitution, a Ventura County Superior Court judge ruled during a sentencing hearing Thursday.
Dana Hiscock Vines, 61, of Thousand Oaks, had pleaded guilty in October to nine counts of grand theft and admitted to special enhancements in a plea deal for embezzling more than $1 million from the company she worked for, according to the Ventura County District Attorney's Office.
Vines, who had been the office manager at Aviara Real Estate, embezzled about $1.12 million from 2007 to 2020, prosecutors say. She used company money to cover personal credit card debt, bonuses and health insurance benefits for herself and her family.
In Thursday's hearing before Judge Bruce Young, Vines was given a suspended four year jail sentence and put on formal probation for 48 months.
She was also ordered to serve a year in county jail starting Feb. 13 and must pay about $388,965 in restitution to Travelers Insurance.
She had already paid back about $800,000 of the embezzled funds, said DA spokesman Joey Buttitta.
Alleged squatter arrested during family's vacation
The Ventura Police Department arrested a man on suspicion of burglary Friday while he was apparently squatting in a home while the family was on vacation.
A neighbor called 911 around 7:30 a.m. after seeing a suspicious male in a house in the 5000 block of Shenandoah Street, according to police. The residents were on vacation.
Arriving officers detained the 43-year-old man, described as transient, inside the home. Their investigation found he had gotten in through a broken window and had been squatting at the residence for several days. He also had items stolen from the house, authorities said.
He was later booked into county jail.
Items may be updated.
This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Roundup: Motorcycle crash in Oxnard, guns seized, embezzler sentenced
