Photo: Manuel Hill
Ventura County – The Ventura County Sheriff’s Department, working in concert with the Camarillo Special Enforcement Detail (SED), has among its many duties, the task of eliminating illegally possessed firearms from the communities they serve.
stolen gun
Working as a plain clothes unit on the afternoon of Saturday May 4th, SED detectives spotted 20-year-old Ventura resident Manuel Hill walking through a Camarillo neighborhood.
According to VCSD spokesman Sgt. Peter Frank, the cops recognized Hill from “previous law enforcement contacts” and knew he was on probation for prior stolen property offenses. Intending to enforce the terms of Hill’s probation, detectives drove up beside Hill to make their presence known.
At that point, Hill immediately took off running, and “ignored all verbal commands to stop running.” An energetic foot chase ensued, during which one of the cops spotted “a black handgun on the ground” in the path just taken by Hill. The pistol was recovered as detectives continued the chase, eventually “catching up to him and placing him under arrest.”
It was determined that Hill had, in fact, been in possession of the loaded semi-automatic handgun at the outset of the chase. Hill was then transported to Ventura County Jail, where he was booked on charges of carrying a concealed firearm, carrying a loaded firearm, receiving stolen property, and violation of his probation terms. He remains in custody with his bail set at $105,000.
Photos: Courtesy Ventura County Jail Booking, Ventura County Sheriff’s Department Special Enforcement Detail
