April 6, 2021 – Santa Barbara County, Ca.
In year’s past, the Spring break period at UCSB has seen hoards of students and out-of-town revelers gathered on the streets and beaches of Isla Vista to let their hair down. 2009’s “Floatopia” was an out-of-control large-scale event that left the beaches and residential areas nearby awash in trash, debris, human waste, and unconscious drunks.
Having learned their lesson, law enforcement and university authorities have made an earnest attempt to thwart any further celebrations of that nature. Earlier in the week, Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department Public Information Officer Raquel Zick announced that Isla Vista beaches are “closed through April 10th in anticipation of a Deltopia event in the interests of public safety.”
That warning was apparently ignored by those intent on enjoying the first weekend of Spring, as Zick reported 20 misdemeanor citations involving drugs and alcohol, and the arrests of five individuals.
Among those arrested was 20-year-old Santa Barbara resident Angel Carachure-Munoz. He was contacted by Isla Vista Foot Patrol Station deputies after he failed to properly negotiate a left-hand turn and was found to be “driving under the influence and in possession of a weapon on school grounds.” He was transported to Santa Barbara County Jail and booked
accordingly.
The passenger in Carachure-Munoz’s vehicle was 32-year-old Lompos resident Ismael Torres, who was contacted and found to have “a firearm concealed in his waistband. Torres was taken into custody and transported to SBCO Jail where he was booked on charges of being a convicted felon in possession of a loaded and concealed firearm, being a felon in possession of ammunition, and altering a firearm marking.
