March 10, 2021- Santa Barbara, Ca.
Maybe 33-year-old Santa Barbara resident Jeremiah Scofield believes what he sees on television cop shows, where a fleeing suspect may have eluded capture by stripping himself bare of any identifying apparel.
But cop-show action isn’t always a very accurate reflection of reality, as the arrest of Scofield on the morning of March 9th clearly proves.
According to Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department Public Information Officer Raquel Zick, deputies reported to a Goleta area gas station pursuant to a report of an individual “causing a disturbance.” But before deputies could make their way to the scene, the suspect—later identified as Scofield—“stole a white flatbed Ford truck” and drove away at a high rate of speed.
Less than ten minutes later, the truck was found abandoned. A secure perimeter was quickly established and the hunt for the truck thief was on. As K9 units and County Air Support were called to the search, calls and social media postings began to come in from local area residents reporting “a subject wrapped in a sheet” running through the area. Deputies quickly followed those reports and located Scofield on a busy Goleta thoroughfare.
Scofield was taken into custody and transported to Santa Barbara County Jail, where he was booked on charges of vehicle theft, loitering on private property, and violation of probation terms. He remains in custody on a no-bail hold.
