COBB, Calif. – Mendocino County Sheriff's deputies assisting local law enforcement with patrols arrested two Lake County men on a variety of charges after they attempted to flee when found in the evacuated fire area.
James Lee Dotson, 23, and Richard Dwayne Tillman, 27, both of Cobb, were arrested on Monday afternoon, according to a report from Mendocino County Sheriff's Capt. Greg Van Patten.
Van Patten said the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office has been providing mutual aid to the Lake County Sheriff’s Office to assist in emergency evacuations and to help prevent acts of looting from unoccupied structures that survived the Valley fire.
At approximately 4:17 p.m. Monday two Mendocino County Sheriff's deputies were flagged down and advised of a suspicious vehicle, a black Honda occupied by four subjects, Van Patten said.
The vehicle was reported to be in the area of the Hoberg's Resort and Spa on Emerford Road, which Van Patten said is one of the evacuated areas where buildings were untouched by the fire. This area is listed as a natural disaster area and closed to public access.
Van Patten said the Mendocino County Sheriff’s deputies responded to the area and located the reported vehicle driving away from the area.
The deputies activated their emergency lights in the attempt to get the vehicle stopped to determine why they were in the area, Van Patten said.
The vehicle did not stop and fled, leading the deputies on a short pursuit which ended on a dead end road located near Highway 175 and Forestry Road, according to Van Patten.
He said the subjects were ordered out of the vehicle and detained.
There were four people in the vehicle – three adults and one 14-year-old juvenile. Van Patten said two of the adults were identified as Dotson and Tillman.
At the conclusion of the contact, Dotson was arrested booked into the Lake County Jail for vehicular fleeing, child endangerment and possession of methamphetamine, Van Patten said.
Tillman, who Van Patten said is a former Ukiah resident, was arrested booked into the Lake County Jail on two outstanding no bail arrest warrants for probation violations out of Mendocino County.
The remaining adult and the 14-year-old juvenile were released at the scene, Van Patten said.
Lake County Jail booking records showed that Dotson's bail was set at $10,000, and that he remained in custody on Wednesday night.
Tillman was placed under a no-bail hold, and on Tuesday was transferred to the Mendocino County Jail, where he was being held without bail.
Visiting deputies apprehend men in fire area, make drug and warrant arrests
- Lake County News reports
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