SPPD: Area man arrested with knife, loaded handgun and meth
February 03, 2016
By Peggy Kelly
Santa Paula News
Santa Paula Police arrested an area man Saturday for allegedly carrying a knife, loaded handgun, methamphetamine and a pipe known commonly used to smoke the illegal substance.
According to SPPD Sgt. Jeremy Watson, the January 30 incident occurred about 9:50 p.m. when an officer observed a “Male subject riding a bicycle on the wrong side of the roadway in the 100 block of East Ventura Street…”
The man was riding the bicycle also “without a properly mounted white headlamp,” both violations of the California Vehicle Code, which also governs bicyclists.
Watson said the officer conducted a traffic enforcement stop on the subject, later identified as Jose Antonio Vargas, 28, of Santa Paula.
The officer found Vargas was in possession of a knife, which Watson said the officer retrieved for safety purposes.
The officer conducted a pat-down search for other weapons and located a loaded .22 caliber semi-automatic handgun in the front pocket of Vargas’s sweatshirt.”
Vargas was taken into custody without incident for suspicion of various weapons related charges.
During the arrest process and a search of Vargas’ person, the officer recovered methamphetamine and a pipe commonly used to smoke the illegal substance. Vargas was also charged with the narcotic related offenses. He was transported to the SPPD for booking and later transferred to the Ventura County Jail for lodging.
Vargas, said Watson, is familiar to Santa Paula Police who have had contacts with him in the past.
