On January 23, 2015, at 1:05 am, a citizen called the Butte County Sheriff’s office to report a subject walking in the area of Grand Ave and 18^th Street, wearing a backpack and looking into mailboxes. Deputies arrived in the area minutes later and attempted to initiate a traffic stop on a Buick SUV in the area.

 The driver of the vehicle failed to yield and led deputies on a pursuit in the Oroville/Thermalito area that lasted approximately 17 minutes. At one point during the pursuit, while eastbound on Grand Ave, the driver of the Buick SUV sideswiped an unoccupied parked vehicle.

 The Butte County Sheriff’s Office requested the assistance of the California Highway Patrol during the pursuit. The driver of the Buick SUV lost control of the vehicle at the intersection of High Street and Oliver Street. A brief foot pursuit ensued and the driver was taken into custody.

 Lao Vang, 35-years-old, from Oroville was arrested for felony evading, being a convicted felon in possession of ammunition and kidnapping (due to having a passenger in the vehicle during the pursuit).

 Lao Vang was transported and booked into the Butte County Jail and is being held on $118,000 bail. The passenger in Lao Vang’s vehicle was unharmed.  

 If anyone has information regarding this incident, please contact the Butte County Sheriff’s Office at (530) 538-7321.

AREA LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES EXPERIENCING TECHNICAL ISSUES WITH NON-EMERGENCY PHONE LINES

 The Butte County Sheriff’s Office and all law enforcement agencies in the county are experiencing some issues with non-emergency telephone lines. Citizens calling in on these lines may have trouble getting through in some cases. AT&T is diligently working on locating the problem and correcting the issue.

9-1-1 emergency lines appear to be functioning at this time. Emergency lines have the ability to be rerouted if necessary, to other local dispatch centers when issues occur to continue to provide the public with immediate access to emergency services.

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For more information, please contact

BCSO Media Liaison Miranda Bowersox

530.990.6949

Mmcafee-bowersox@buttecounty.net

On January 14, 2015, the Paradise Police Department conducted an investigation into suspicious circumstances, and determined that 26 year old Dustin Ridge Mason was inside a residence on the 1500 block of Hanson Road, Paradise.  Mason had a felony warrant through Yuba County for burglary (459 PC) and vandalism (594 PC).  Mason was also wanted by the Butte County Sheriff’s Office for armed robbery (211 PC), using a firearm in the commission of a felony (12022.53 PC), possession of an assault weapon (30605 PC), possession of stolen property (496 PC), vehicle theft (10851 CVC) and manufacturing a controlled substance (11379.6 H&S).  Mason was alleged to have been armed with an additional pistol while he was wanted.  The Paradise Police Department set a perimeter around the subject residence, and evacuated all other occupants.  Once additional Officers arrived from the Sheriff’s Office, the residence was searched and Mason was located hiding underneath the mobile home.  He was taken into custody without incident and booked in to the Butte County Jail on $245,000 bail.  A stolen motorcycle was recovered at scene, and returned to its rightful owner.

 Mason’s charges with the Butte County Sheriff’s Office stem from a multiple of incidents.  The Maintenance Shop at the Concow Elementary School was broken into on December 26, 2014, and again on January 5, 2015.  Each time, the suspects took numerous tools and supplies used to maintain the school property.  The school reported the burglaries to the Butte County Sheriff’s Office, and provided a list of the property that was taken.  Mason was found to be in possession of some of the property taken from the school.

 Additional charges stemmed from an incident that occurred on Saturday January 10, 2015, on Coniston Loop in Concow. Butte County Sheriff’s Deputies responded to a report that Mason took personal property from a victim at the residence at gun point.  During the course of the investigation, Deputies located additional stolen property associated to a recent burglary, firearms, stolen vehicles, and a lab to manufacture a controlled substance.

Released by:  Lieutenant Al Smith

Oroville—Sheriff’s Deputies responded at 10:00 am, to the report of a stabbing that occurred near the “Golden Feather Market” in the 700 block of Oro-Dam Blvd West.  Upon arrival they contacted the victim who had received a single stab wound.  The victim is an adult, male, resident of Oroville and was transported to a local hospital for treatment.  His injury is not believed to be life-threatening.  Details leading up to the stabbing are not known at this point and the investigation is ongoing.

BUTTE COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPUTIES CAPTURE BANK ROBBER

Durham, Ca—Butte County Sheriff’s Office responded to a robbery at Tri Counties Bank, in Durham, shortly after 3pm this afternoon. Fortunately, no one was injured in the incident. Through good police work, and a quick response, the suspect was detained shortly after the incident. The suspect, Jeffrey Nelson (DOB 11/14/58), is currently in custody in the Butte County Jail for armed robbery. Nelson’s bail has been set at $100,000. A loaded hand gun, along with the cash taken from the bank, was recovered.

This is an ongoing investigation in coordination with the FBI.

For more information, please contact

BCSO Media Liaison Miranda Bowersox

530.538.5384, 530.990.6949

Mmcafee-bowersox@buttecounty.net