Suspected vehicle thief arrested with help of Santa Barbara sheriff dog

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - Santa Barbara County Sheriff's deputies assisted Santa Barbara police in searching for a stolen vehicle at the 400 block of Arroyo Road.

The incident was called in around 4 a.m. early Sunday morning.

Officers identified the stolen vehicle as a black 2015 GMC truck that had been taken from the 100 block of Bath Street earlier in the evening.

With the help of OnStar, officers were able to track the truck to an address on Arroyo Road.

The Sheriff's Office said deputies responded to the same address earlier that evening while investigating a burglary where items were stolen from a vacant home, including a garage door remote.

Sheriff's deputies, police and CHP officers worked together to set up a perimeter around the Arroyo Road house. They then called for the suspect to surrender using a PA system.

After several attempts to call the suspect from the house, deputies decided to enter with the help of a police dog and search for the suspect.

K9 unit, Odin, was sent to search the upstairs area of the house. There, Odin located the suspect and apprehended him.

Deputies and officers contacted suspect Benny Velasquez, 41, of Santa Barbara and arrested him.

Velasquez reportedly sustained some minor injuries from his encounter with K9 Odin. Velasquez was treated on the scene and at the hospital before being booked at the Santa Barbara County Main Jail.

Velasquez was booked on charges of burglary by the Sheriff's Office, vehicle theft by SBPD and for two outstanding warrants: one for vehicle theft and a no-bail warrant for probation violation.