Pedestrian Killed in SB and IV Robberies

It was certainly a tragic Saturday night when a woman and her dog were struck and killed by multiple vehicles on Highway 101 just after 11pm. The fatal accident happened next to the Milpas south off ramp where traffic was being directed to exit. Southbound Highway 101 was completely closed off at this location for several hours until law enforcement officials completed their investigation.

Captain Chris Mailes from the Santa Barbara Fire Department says two engines were dispatched to the scene. However, upon arrival, the California Highway Patrol had already declared the woman deceased. Both bodies on the road were covered up but that was no console for the multiple drivers that were witness to the tragic event. As a reader and witness states, “I drove past the severed body not knowing what it was til I saw the look on a woman's face that had pulled over. Most gruesome sight I have ever seen.” Officers were faced with the task of providing support for the traumatized drivers.

It is unclear what this woman was doing on the freeway with her dog, but a Santa Barbara police official pointed out to the fact that there are homeless camps around the area close to the highway. Some residents believe the dog perhaps wandered into the 101 with a concerned owner trying to retrieve it. Whatever the case may be, the facts of the case will not be known until law officials complete their investigation, and even then certain aspects of this tragedy may never be known.

In Isla Vista, a young woman reported she had a phone stolen from her while on Del Playa Drive around 1:20AM. She claimed a black male adult she had befriended earlier, about 5’4”, 130lbs, beach blonde hair and dark clothing, was the suspect. Minutes later, a man reported being robbed in the 6500 block of Segovia Rd. in Isla Vista when a dark red sedan pulled up next to him. According to the victim, the passenger in the sedan, described as a college age black mail with facial hair, made a motion that appeared as though he had a gun. The suspect then took the victim’s cell phone and wallet, although he left the cell phone before driving away.

According to scanner traffic, police were called to the downtown area near Carrillo St. around 2AM to investigate recent activity placed on a credit card that was believed to be the victim’s. Some time later, it appeared as though the red sedan associated with the IV robbery was stopped by police. UCSB sent out a reverse 911 informing students of the two crimes.