BRIEFLY IN PUBLIC SAFETY

Man accused of DUI in four-car pileup

An Escondido man was arrested on suspicion of felony DUI after allegedly causing a four-vehicle pileup that injured four people at 5:32 p.m. Sunday on Coast Highway near Camel Point, Laguna Beach Police Sgt. Jason Kravetz said.

Police were initially alerted to a suspected drunk driver in a BMW traveling southbound on South Coast Highway near Bluebird Canyon. Then police received a report that a BMW was involved in the collision.

According to police, the suspect’s yellow BMW M3 was traveling southbound when it struck the left rear side of a SMART car also traveling southbound. This caused the SMART car to spin out and started a chain reaction collision involving a silver 2001 VW Passat and a black 2008 Infinity G35.

In the end, four people were injured and four cars were heavily damaged. The only person not injured in the crash was the suspected drunk driver, identified as Evan Christopher Anwyl, 21, who police allege had three times the legal limit of alcohol in his blood at the time of the crash.

The injuries to the other people consisted of moderate head injuries, blunt force head trauma, and neck and back pain, Kravetz said. Three out of the four injured people were taken to area hospitals. The fourth injury was a laceration to the leg, and this victim refused treatment.

Doctor’s wallet stolen from her office

Laguna Beach police are hoping to catch whoever stole a wallet from a South Laguna physician while she was in her office and seeing patients, Kravetz said. The theft was reported at 12:35 p.m. Wednesday. The suspect then went on a shopping spree and charged $1,100 for various items.

“The locations where the suspect committed these crimes all have inside and outside video surveillance and our investigators will be following up on the case,” Kravetz said.

Suspect cashes checks that were left in mailbox

Checks used to pay bills were cashed by a suspect who obtained $1,500 from the altered checks, Kravetz said. The victim, a resident in the 800 block of Diamond Street, told police at 3:20 p.m. Wednesday she left bills in the mailbox for pickup on March 2, and subsequently the checks were cashed fraudulently. The victim believes the bills were stolen from the mailbox.

Driver held after parked car is hit

A Laguna Hills man was arrested on suspicion of DUI and hit-and-run after police followed up on a 911 call and stopped him on an allegation that he failed to stop after hitting a parked vehicle at South Coast Highway and Laguna Avenue at 10:42 p.m. Wednesday, Kravetz said.

Adam Lee Matteson, 27, allegedly struck an Audi A4 with his Dodge Charger, taking the driver’s side mirror off the Audi.

Dining patio of local restaurant vandalized

An outdoor speaker and plantings were reported damaged at an outdoor dining area of a restaurant in the 1200 block of South Coast Highway at 6:31 a.m. Thursday, Kravetz said.

The damages total about $100. An unknown suspect tried unsuccessfully to remove a fixed speaker from a wall, damaging a bracket holding the speaker. The suspect also damaged a couple of surrounding plants by stepping on them.

Peruvian man held in cocaine case

A Peruvian man was arrested on suspicion of possessing cocaine for sale at 2:28 p.m. Thursday in the 900 block of Summit Way, Kravetz said.

Laguna Beach police had gone to the house to assist Immigration and Customs Enforcement, who were trying to locate the suspect, Renzo Fabrizio Gamboa, 34. ICE suspected Gamboa of being in the U.S. illegally. After locating Gamboa at the home, police allegedly found cocaine in his possession and arrested him. In addition, ICE placed an immigration hold on him. He is being held without bail at the Orange County Jail, according to jail records.

Surfboard heist leads to arrest of man

A man was arrested on suspicion of trying to steal surfboards and boogie boards from a home in the 1300 block of Gaviota Drive at 12:55 a.m. Sunday, Kravetz said.

The occupants of the home were awakened by a noise from a lower deck, and when they looked outside, they told police they saw a man standing on the lower deck and throwing surfboards and boogie boards down to the sand. Before police arrived, five surfboards and three boogie boards, totaling $1,640, had been thrown to the sand. The suspect ran off, but was caught hiding in a nearby yard. All the boards were recovered at the scene.

The suspect is identified as Aleksandrs Juris Dankers, 26, described in jail records as an assistant editor.

Bar argument ends in assault arrest

A 24-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of threatening a bar patron with a knife during an argument at a bar in the 200 block of Ocean Avenue at 1:04 a.m. Sunday, Kravetz said.

Many people at the bar came to the victim’s aid and the suspect ran off with his two friends. Police found the suspect, identified in police records as Raymond Frank Mendoza, at a nearby parking lot and arrested him on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon. There were no injuries.