Several Suspects from Outside Sonoma County Attempted to Burglarize a Local Cannabis Business and Then Drove Recklessly to Avoid Police

On Monday, February 13, 2023, at 3:18 am, the Santa Rosa Police Department received a call from a marijuana dispensary in the 1800 block of Ferdinand Ct. in Santa Rosa reporting that a vehicle rammed the gates to the business. Four vehicles then entered the parking lot of the business. An armed security guard for the business engaged with the suspects as they got out of their vehicles. The suspects fled in the vehicles before police officers arrived. The security guard provided dispatchers with vehicle descriptions, and surrounding agencies were notified. Additionally, an uninvolved citizen called SRPD and reported seeing four vehicles with their license plates covered, exit Highway 101 at Bicentennial Way.

A few minutes later, a Santa Rosa Police officer patrolled a marijuana dispensary on Piner Road when he saw a group of vehicles driving on Piner Road and realized they matched the description of the vehicles described in the attempted burglary earlier on Ferdinand Court.  The officer noticed that the vehicle license plates were still covered.  Santa Rosa Police Officers attempted to make a traffic stop on the vehicles, but they entered Highway 101 traveling south.  Officers pursued the four vehicles south on Highway 101 at speeds that reached approximately 100 miles per hour. 

During the pursuit, one of the vehicles exited the freeway at Todd Road.  Officers pursuing that vehicle lost sight of it and terminated the pursuit. Other Santa Rosa Police Department Officers continued pursuing the three remaining vehicles until they reached the Cotati Grade on Highway 101 where they lost sight of the vehicles due to fog and terminated the pursuit.  The Sonoma County Sheriff’s Department and California Highway Patrol located the suspect vehicles and continued the pursuit into Petaluma on the freeway.  A Petaluma Police Department officer successfully deployed a spike strip that disabled one of the vehicles.  Two of the vehicle’s occupants fled into the nearby wooded area on foot and were not located after a search.  The vehicle had been leased and was towed back to Santa Rosa as evidence.

California Highway Patrol officers were called to a vehicle on eastbound Interstate 580 that was blocking the freeway.  Santa Rosa Police officers learned the vehicle was identified as one of the vehicles from the earlier pursuit and had run out of gas on the freeway.  The driver of another vehicle picked up the occupants of the stranded vehicle. 

The suspect vehicles were described as:

• Black mid-size SUV
• Silver SUV (two)
• Black Mercedes Benz sedan

The investigation is ongoing, and any with information is asked to contact the Santa Rosa Police Department at 707-528-5222.
Media inquiries may be directed to Sergeant Christopher Mahurin at (707) 975-0129 or cmahurin@srcity.org. SRPD case number 23-1746