Four people are in custody in Santa Barbara following a kidnapping and attempted car theft on Wednesday morning.
Santa Barbara Police officers said that a man was returning to his vehicle at the Hendry’s Beach parking lot around 11 a.m. when he noticed four people acting suspiciously nearby. He told police he noticed the lock of his camper shell had been broken.
The man approached the nearby Audi Q5 SUV that had a rear door ajar to try to confront the suspects. He was then pulled into the moving car as it started heading on Cliff Drive. The victim was able to escape and call 911 when the car slowed down.
Officers later identified the Audi Q5 at Carillo Street and San Andres Street about 12 minutes later and took the suspects into custody after a brief chase.
Officers said that Yusset Aloma Gonzalez Astorga, 31, Jean Nahuelan Valladares, 31, Manuel Leiva Parra, 23 and Yessenia Cortez, 35 are in custody and are expected to be charged with kidnapping, assault with a deadly weapon and attempted burglary charges.
Santa Barbara Police said that additional victims are being contacted in the investigation.
