Photo: Margret Witzig, Rebecca Hobbs and Santiago Ramirez
Originally published as a King County Sheriff’s Office press release –
“On Monday, February 14, 2022 at approximately 1340 hours, Deputies were dispatched to the area of 12th Avenue and Idaho Avenue in rural Kings County to investigate a vehicle burglary.
Deputies arrived at the scene and contacted the victim. The victim told the deputies that while he was working in an orchard, a black Kia Optima pulled up next to his work truck. Occupants from the Kia got out and began rummaging through the work truck. Other workers in the area spotted the theft and starting yelling at the suspects. The suspects got back into the Kia and drove away.
The victim told Deputies several personal items were then missing from his truck. One of the responding Deputies spotted the Kia in the area and conducted an investigative traffic stop. Three suspects were detained and as the investigation continued, Deputies located several items belonging to the victim inside the Kia. The driver was identified as Margret Witzig and the passengers were identified as Rebecca Hobbs and Santiago Ramirez. Additionally, their shoe
tread matched the shoe impressions left at the scene of the theft.
Deputies searched the suspects and the Kia and located a long list of items that revealed significant criminal activity had been taking place. Some of the items included, over 50 credit cards with various names on them, numerous checks, blank checks, personal documents of various people, burglary tools to include shaved keys, brass knuckles, a window punch and over 5 ounces of Methamphetamine.
Authorities located a dozen credit cards issued under the names of a husband and wife from Southern California. The female was contacted by Deputies and she informed them she had recently been on the phone with several banks trying to determine how credit cards were being opened in her and her late husband’s name. It was determined a home owned by the family in Kern County had been burglarized and resulted in the credit cards being opened.
Santiago Ramirez, Rebecca Hobbs and Margret Witzig were booked into Kings County Jail on the charges of transportation of a controlled substance, sales of a controlled substance, possession of fictitious instruments, felony theft, identity theft, mail theft, possession of burglar tools and being under the influence of a controlled substance.
Margret was also charged with bringing contraband into the Kings County Jail. Santiago had a prior conviction of a serious and violent felony, was on active CDC parole and was charged with a parole violation. Margret’s bail was set at $70,000. Rebecca’s bail was set at $105,000 and Santiago’s bail was set at $80,000.”
