PURSUIT ENDS IN ARREST: CERES - Officers from Ceres Police Department arrested a Modesto man on several felony charges after a vehicle pursuit on Tuesday, August 4.
Michael Mize, 51, was arrested after leading officers on a chase from Ceres to Ripon. He was booked for assault with a deadly weapon, felonious evading an officer, being an ex-felon in possession of a loaded firearm, possession of a firearm with an altered serial number, committing a felong while on bail, and assault with a deadly weapon. Mize had additional warrants for his arrest relating to drug trafficking.
At 9:16 a.m. a Ceres officer spotted Mize and tried to pull him over for a vehicle code violation. He was driving a 1980s model Chezy Blazer and ignored the patrol unit following him on northbound Highway 99 near Mitchell Road. Mize accelerated and led police on a chase up to 80 mph into Ripon.
Police say Mize purposely crashed the Blazer into a vehicle that joined in the chase from the Stanislaus County Auto Theft Task Force (StanCATT) in an attempt to get away. Mize was eventually stopped on the freeway after he was seen tossing a gun from the vehicle. He was arrested without incident. The weapon was recovered.
Mize was being held on $182,020 bail.
BURGLARY SUSPECTS NABBED: CERES - Two Ceres men were charged with burglary after they were seen sneaking into a vacant house in the 2500 block of El Dorado Drive and taking out a cabinet and window blinds on Tuesday, August 4.
Officer Joe Wren was flagged down at 10 p.m. by someone who watched four men carrying out the cabinet and followed two of them Barbour's Save Center. Arrested were Lloyd S. Wilson, 38, and Scott D. Nester, 34, both of Ceres. Both were charged with burglary.
The other two men were not apprehended, said Deputy Chief of Police Mike Borges.
WEAPON, POT PIPE FOUND IN CAR: CERES - Officer Brinton Moore stopped a car at Herndon and Joyce at 2:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Aug 5 and ended up arresting both occupants of the vehicle.
While speaking to driver Bronson Zapien, 19, of Modesto, Moore noticed passenger Bronson Zapien, 19, of Modesto, trying to hide something. Both were detained and given a pat-down search. Zapien was found with a set of brass knuckles and arrested and charged with possession of a dangerous weapon.
Miller was arrested for public intoxication.
DRINKING BUDDIES ARRESTED: CERES - A man who backed into his buddy's car while leaving a Service Road bar was arrested August 5, as was his friend, who later tried to leave the bar driving while drunk.
Officer Brinton Moore was driving past the Blue Lagoon bar in the 3000 block of Service Road at 9:39 p.m. and saw a bar patron back up his car into another car and leave. Moore stopped the driver, Kipp D. Martinez, 44, of Ceres, and arrested him for DUI.
As this was going on, Officer Moore saw the owner of the car that was hit get into his car and leave. Gilbert Gutierrez Jr., 48, of Ceres, was also arrested by Moore for DUI.
Gutierrez said he didn't want to press hit and run charges against Martinez, saying that he was a friend.
TWO DRIVE-BYS WITHIN HOURS: CERES - Police have little to go on in apprehending the person or persons who committed two separate drive-by shootings within hours last week.
The first shooting took place at 9:56 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 6 in the 1700 block of Central Avenue. Nobody was injured in the shooting. Deputy Chief Borges said that no vehicle description was offered. Four small-caliber rounds struck a living room window. Borges said the shooting did not appear to be gang related but also noted "we have no real information to go on."
Then at 12:39 a.m. on Aug. 7, someone fired shots in the 1600 block of Richland Avenue. Again, nobody was hit but a front window of a house and a truck were hit. Because an occupant of the house has ties to the Sureno gang, police believe it may have been a gang related shooting.
Borges said his department has not ruled out that the two shootings were related since both were committed with a small caliber gun.
CAR JACKING AND ATTEMPTED KIDNAPPING: CERES - Police are looking into a bizarre case of a carjacking and attempted kidnapping that took place on Aug. 5.
Police were called at 10:25 a.m. by a 48-year-old woman who said that she met her ex-girlfriend in Modesto to bring her back to Ceres. During the ride she noticed that two Hispanic men were following in a silver four-door vehicle following them into Ceres. At one point the female passenger asked the woman to stop to speak to the suspects. When she returned the ex-girlfriend pulled a knife on her and claimed that the trio already kidnapped her 28-year-old son. The driver fled on foot and called police from Fourth and Lawrence. The ex-girlfriend then drove away the white 2004 Chevy Colorado pickup and took off with the men following.
The men were described as being Hispanic in their 30s.
SON THREATENS PARENTS: CERES - A La Grange man was arrested Saturday after he threatened to kill his parents at their Redwood Road house outside of Ceres.
At 5:38 p.m. Richard Norton Jr., 46, got into a domestic squabble with his parents. Norton had been living in La Grange but recently moved in with his parents. In the disturbance, according to the Sheriff's Department, a fight ensued and Norton allegedly threatened to kill his parents. The mother thought her son pulled a knife on the father as she called 911. Norton also threw items at the house and broke a window. The father fired one round of 16-gauge birdshot through the window to ward off his son.
Norton was arrested for making criminal threats and vandalism.
BRANDISHING FAKE GUNS: CERES - Police responded to two calls in two days of persons brandishing weapons which ended up being replica guns.
Police went to the 1900 block of Darrah Street at 11:42 p.m. on Aug. 6 for a call of a man brandishing a handgun. Officers found a man with an "air soft gun" shooting at trees.
"It wasn't a real gun," said Deputy Chief of Police Mike Borges. "These guns are so realistic looking that it causes people to call us."
At 10:19 a.m. on Aug. 8 a similar call came in from the 2500 block of Don Pedro Road. The caller said a man put a gun into his pants.
"It's not illegal to possess unless it's pointed at others," said Borges. "But it also causes us to exercise a display of force of weapons drawn."
Michael Mize, 51, was arrested after leading officers on a chase from Ceres to Ripon. He was booked for assault with a deadly weapon, felonious evading an officer, being an ex-felon in possession of a loaded firearm, possession of a firearm with an altered serial number, committing a felong while on bail, and assault with a deadly weapon. Mize had additional warrants for his arrest relating to drug trafficking.
At 9:16 a.m. a Ceres officer spotted Mize and tried to pull him over for a vehicle code violation. He was driving a 1980s model Chezy Blazer and ignored the patrol unit following him on northbound Highway 99 near Mitchell Road. Mize accelerated and led police on a chase up to 80 mph into Ripon.
Police say Mize purposely crashed the Blazer into a vehicle that joined in the chase from the Stanislaus County Auto Theft Task Force (StanCATT) in an attempt to get away. Mize was eventually stopped on the freeway after he was seen tossing a gun from the vehicle. He was arrested without incident. The weapon was recovered.
Mize was being held on $182,020 bail.
BURGLARY SUSPECTS NABBED: CERES - Two Ceres men were charged with burglary after they were seen sneaking into a vacant house in the 2500 block of El Dorado Drive and taking out a cabinet and window blinds on Tuesday, August 4.
Officer Joe Wren was flagged down at 10 p.m. by someone who watched four men carrying out the cabinet and followed two of them Barbour's Save Center. Arrested were Lloyd S. Wilson, 38, and Scott D. Nester, 34, both of Ceres. Both were charged with burglary.
The other two men were not apprehended, said Deputy Chief of Police Mike Borges.
WEAPON, POT PIPE FOUND IN CAR: CERES - Officer Brinton Moore stopped a car at Herndon and Joyce at 2:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Aug 5 and ended up arresting both occupants of the vehicle.
While speaking to driver Bronson Zapien, 19, of Modesto, Moore noticed passenger Bronson Zapien, 19, of Modesto, trying to hide something. Both were detained and given a pat-down search. Zapien was found with a set of brass knuckles and arrested and charged with possession of a dangerous weapon.
Miller was arrested for public intoxication.
DRINKING BUDDIES ARRESTED: CERES - A man who backed into his buddy's car while leaving a Service Road bar was arrested August 5, as was his friend, who later tried to leave the bar driving while drunk.
Officer Brinton Moore was driving past the Blue Lagoon bar in the 3000 block of Service Road at 9:39 p.m. and saw a bar patron back up his car into another car and leave. Moore stopped the driver, Kipp D. Martinez, 44, of Ceres, and arrested him for DUI.
As this was going on, Officer Moore saw the owner of the car that was hit get into his car and leave. Gilbert Gutierrez Jr., 48, of Ceres, was also arrested by Moore for DUI.
Gutierrez said he didn't want to press hit and run charges against Martinez, saying that he was a friend.
TWO DRIVE-BYS WITHIN HOURS: CERES - Police have little to go on in apprehending the person or persons who committed two separate drive-by shootings within hours last week.
The first shooting took place at 9:56 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 6 in the 1700 block of Central Avenue. Nobody was injured in the shooting. Deputy Chief Borges said that no vehicle description was offered. Four small-caliber rounds struck a living room window. Borges said the shooting did not appear to be gang related but also noted "we have no real information to go on."
Then at 12:39 a.m. on Aug. 7, someone fired shots in the 1600 block of Richland Avenue. Again, nobody was hit but a front window of a house and a truck were hit. Because an occupant of the house has ties to the Sureno gang, police believe it may have been a gang related shooting.
Borges said his department has not ruled out that the two shootings were related since both were committed with a small caliber gun.
CAR JACKING AND ATTEMPTED KIDNAPPING: CERES - Police are looking into a bizarre case of a carjacking and attempted kidnapping that took place on Aug. 5.
Police were called at 10:25 a.m. by a 48-year-old woman who said that she met her ex-girlfriend in Modesto to bring her back to Ceres. During the ride she noticed that two Hispanic men were following in a silver four-door vehicle following them into Ceres. At one point the female passenger asked the woman to stop to speak to the suspects. When she returned the ex-girlfriend pulled a knife on her and claimed that the trio already kidnapped her 28-year-old son. The driver fled on foot and called police from Fourth and Lawrence. The ex-girlfriend then drove away the white 2004 Chevy Colorado pickup and took off with the men following.
The men were described as being Hispanic in their 30s.
SON THREATENS PARENTS: CERES - A La Grange man was arrested Saturday after he threatened to kill his parents at their Redwood Road house outside of Ceres.
At 5:38 p.m. Richard Norton Jr., 46, got into a domestic squabble with his parents. Norton had been living in La Grange but recently moved in with his parents. In the disturbance, according to the Sheriff's Department, a fight ensued and Norton allegedly threatened to kill his parents. The mother thought her son pulled a knife on the father as she called 911. Norton also threw items at the house and broke a window. The father fired one round of 16-gauge birdshot through the window to ward off his son.
Norton was arrested for making criminal threats and vandalism.
BRANDISHING FAKE GUNS: CERES - Police responded to two calls in two days of persons brandishing weapons which ended up being replica guns.
Police went to the 1900 block of Darrah Street at 11:42 p.m. on Aug. 6 for a call of a man brandishing a handgun. Officers found a man with an "air soft gun" shooting at trees.
"It wasn't a real gun," said Deputy Chief of Police Mike Borges. "These guns are so realistic looking that it causes people to call us."
At 10:19 a.m. on Aug. 8 a similar call came in from the 2500 block of Don Pedro Road. The caller said a man put a gun into his pants.
"It's not illegal to possess unless it's pointed at others," said Borges. "But it also causes us to exercise a display of force of weapons drawn."
