Press Releases

Release Date/Time: 3/26/2020 11:33 AM
Incident:  Assault with Deadly Weapon, Evading, Resisting and Violation of Shelter in Place Order Arrest
Date: Thursday, 3/26/2020
Time: 01:19 AM
Location:222 Lincoln Ave

                                                                                            Assault with Deadly Weapon, Evading, Resisting and Violation of Shelter in Place Order Arrest

On 3-26-2020 at 1:19 am a suspicious individual, later identified as Abundio Cruz (50) was observed driving a white Honda erratically near the police department, 222 Lincoln Ave. Cruz parked and exited his vehicle, then he approached and was looking into a vehicle in the department parking lot on the driver's side. Cruz then proceeded to enter his vehicle and drive off at a high rate of speed, driving around the block several times as officers arrived on scene. Officers located the white Honda and it immediately fled and a short pursuit was initiated.

Cruz attempted to run into two patrol vehicles, as the 1/10 of a mile pursuit was traveling eastbound on Gabilan St. towards Salinas St. Cruz deliberately crashed into an officer's vehicle stopped at the red light as Cruz made a left turn northbound at approximately 35-40 mph. The officer suffered minor injuries.

After the collision, Cruz remained in his vehicle refusing to obey all officers' commands. Officers broke out a window to Cruz' vehicle after he refused to exit his vehicle and K-9 Robby was released. K-9 Robby engaged Cruz who was subsequently taken into custody. Cruz suffered lacerations to his left and right arms, in addition, to minor cuts to his face.

After medical clearance, Cruz was transported to county jail and charged with Assault with a Deadly Weapon, Evading and Resisting Arrest. In addition, Cruz was determined to be in Violation of Parole and Violation of the Shelter in Place order.

Release Authorized by:Miguel Cabrera
Telephone:831 758-7289

Release Date/Time: 3/23/2020 12:22 PM
Incident: Robbery/Burglary/Resisting Arrest/Conspiracy/Gang Enhancements
Date: Monday, 3/22/2020
Time: 4:40 PM
Location: 1274 S. Main St. 

On March 22, 2020 at approximately 4:40 pm, Salinas Police officers responded to 1274 S. Main St., the Verizon Store, regarding a robbery that had just occurred. The lone store employee called 911 stating that two masked African American males entered the store and immediately confronted them with an object which was thought to be a knife, but later determined to be a screwdriver. The employee had their cell phone in their hand and one of the suspects took it. The suspects then ordered the employee to open the safe which contained numerous cell phones and placed them in a duffel bag. The suspects also ordered the employee to open the register and took cash. Both suspects ran out of the store and fled in a silver Toyota Camry.

Within a few minutes, a Salinas Police officer saw a vehicle that matched the description provided by witnesses at Maple St. and California St. Once he pulled in behind the vehicle it immediately parked, and three suspects ran. Officers were able to quickly set up a perimeter and began a search for the suspects.

Officers found Frederick Maurice Wright, age 29, hiding in a trash can in the 200 block of Maple St. He was taken into custody without incident.

Daiviuan Jewailan West, age 18, was spotted near the campus of Lincoln Elementary School, at Maple St. and Front St. West was taken into custody after a short foot pursuit.

Letroy Russel Higgins, age 19, was found and apprehended by K9 'Charro” while hiding in a backyard out building in the 200 block of Harvest St.

A search of the suspect vehicle was conducted and 24 new Apple iPhones and Galaxy phones worth $15,900 were found. The money taken from the register, along with the masks used by the suspects, were also found in the vehicle.

The three suspects were found to be gang members from Bakersfield, CA. All three were lodged into Monterey County Jail on charges of Robbery, Burglary, Resisting Arrest, Conspiracy and Gang Enhancements.

Release Authorized by: Christopher Lane, Sergeant
Telephone: 831-758-7280

Release Date/Time: 3/16/2020 1:26 PM
Incident:POLICE SERVICE OF SALINAS BUILDING RIBBON CUTTING CEREMONY is POSTPONED Until Further Notice.
Date: Monday, 3/16/2020
Time: 1:26 PM
Location:312 E. Alisal St.

POLICE SERVICE OF SALINAS BUILDING RIBBON CUTTING CEREMONY scheduled to take place tommorrow March, 17 at 1:00 pm is POSTPONED until further notice.

ORIGINAL PRESS RELEASE:

Salinas, CA - Salinas Police Chief Adele Fresé and the men and women of Salinas Police Department are excited to announce a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Tuesday, March 17, 2020 at 1:00pm. The brief ceremony is to officially welcome our officers to the new building and begin the transition of moving from our old department to our new, "Police Service of Salinas" building at 312 E. Alisal St.

In the months ahead, we anticipate inviting the public to a Police Service of Salinas Community Celebration once the building is fully occupied and operational. At that time, residents will be able to take guided tours, get to know Salinas Police officers, and discover the welcoming atmosphere of our new community room.  All ages will be welcome.

The current PD will remain as the point of contact for all public interaction until further notice.  A subsequent notification will be released advising when police operations will transfer to the new location

The new Salinas Police Service Headquarters is a $56 million project for the city of Salinas that will replace the current police headquarters (222 Lincoln Ave.) originally built in 1958.

The facility consists of two buildings:

 - A two story, 44,352 sq. ft. Headquarters (built to the highest life safety standards) that will house Administration, Investigations, Patrol and Support Staff. There will also be a community room opening to the adjacent parking lot to help facilitate community events.

 - A second, 24,878 sq. ft. Support Building that includes advanced, state-of-the-art evidence storage areas, forensic laboratory and firearms training facility.

Regarding the ribbon cutting, Chief Fresé noted, "This facility represents the decades of promises to officers and community members that we would build a new police station. Residents understood that we have just simply outgrown our current building, and the technology and infrastructure is over 60 years old. We are grateful to the community for passing Measure G and to the Mayor and City Council for seeing it through to completion."

Release Authorized by:Miguel Cabrera
Telephone:831 758-7289

Release Date/Time: 3/16/2020 12:58 PM
Incident:Limited Access to Salinas Police Department Front Counter/ Lobby Services
Date: Monday, 3/16/2020
Time: 12:58 PM
Location:222 Lincoln Ave.

The Salinas Police Department would like to inform the public that starting today, March 16, 2020 in an effort to protect the safety and welfare of our community, in person police department lobby services are being limited to help and avoid potential exposure to Corona Virus.

If you require in person assistance, you are asked to use the doorbell in front of the lobby entrance to speak to a community service officer. Access to the lobby would be granted one person at a time to handle issues that cannot be handled otherwise. For non- emergency reports, please utilize either online reporting via salinaspd.com or call 831 758-7147 to file a report over the phone.

We apologize for the inconvenience.

Release Authorized by:Miguel Cabrera
Telephone:831 758-7289