Morgan Hill’s K-9 officer bit a burglary suspect on the face
when he failed to submit to police orders on the roof of the former
Courtesy Chevrolet dealership Saturday.
Man holds up pharmacy for pain meds
A man silently presented a note to a pharmacy clerk, claiming he was armed and demanding a supply of the narcotic pain medication OxyContin, police said.
About 10 a.m. Friday, an unknown suspect walked up to the pharmacy counter at Walgreens at 745 East Dunne Ave., according to Morgan Hill Police Sgt. Jerry Neumayer.
He gave the clerk a hand-written note indicating he was armed and he wanted the heavy-strength medication. Witnesses said no weapon was seen, Neumayer said.
The clerk gave the robber more than 500 OxyContin pills worth more than $4,000. Personnel at the store were unable to call police to report the crime until after the man left.
Police are still looking for the suspect, who is described as a white male, age 25 to 30, about 6-feet tall and 170 pounds, Neumayer said.
OxyContin, which contains the popular opium-derived pain reliever Oxycodone, is available by prescription only to treat moderate to severe pain symptoms, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The drug is also widely sought on the black market for its euphoria-inducing side effects, and warning labels on OxyContin packages caution doctors and patients to note its capacity to produce dependency or addiction. Labels also warn against overuse or “potentially fatal” doses of Oxycodone.
A number of robberies similar to the one at Walgreens have been reported in other communities in recent weeks, including in Monterey and Marina, Neumayer said. It is possible the suspect plans to sell the medication on the streets, he added.
Anyone with more information on this incident may call Detective Ken Howard of the Morgan Hill Police Department at (408) 779-2101.
Officer bites burglary suspect
Morgan Hill’s K-9 officer bit a burglary suspect on the face when he failed to submit to police orders on the roof of the former Courtesy Chevrolet dealership Saturday.
About 1 p.m., officers responded to the first of two alarm calls from the building at 17100 Laurel Road, whose security system is still monitored even though the dealership is closed. Morgan Hill Police Sgt. Jerry Neumayer said there is still valuable property and equipment at the site.
Officers didn’t see anything suspicious when responding to the first alarm, but the alarm went off a second time about 3:40 p.m. When police responded to that alarm, an officer saw two suspects nearby walking away from the building.
The two men were arrested, and authorities determined that two more suspects remained inside the building. Police then entered with the MHPD K-9 unit. The police dog was carried onto the roof, which was accessible only by a ladder on the interior. On the roof, police located two more suspects who were hiding.
The two young men were given “numerous commands” to show their hands and come out of the shadows, Neumayer said. Only one did so, and the other one continued to lie down with his hands hidden.
“The officers were unsure if he had a gun” or another weapon, Neumayer said.
Police unleashed the dog, who ran toward the non-complying suspect. The suspect, Wesley Aatlo, 20 of Morgan Hill, moved away when he saw the dog coming toward him. The dog bit Aatlo in the face and head and was then called off by his handler, officer David Ray.
Aatlo was arrested on suspicion of commercial burglary, Neumayer said. He was treated at Valley Medical Center in San Jose, where he received stitches for bite wounds, and was released to the Santa Clara County Jail.
Also arrested and booked on suspicion of commercial burglary were Michael Solorio, 21; Thomas Tirey, 20; and Sergio Salciccia, 20, all from Morgan Hill.
When he receives the command to bite a suspect, the MHPD police dog is specifically trained to bite the part of the body that is moving away, Neumayer said. In this incident, that body part was Aatlo’s head.
Six MHPD officers and four deputies from the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office responded to the incident.
Liquor store clerk foils burglary
An unknown suspect attempted to steal liquor from Sun Valley Market, but was foiled by the store’s clerk, police said.
A group of subjects who police think were associated with the crime walked into the store’s front entrance at 16725 Monterey Street and tried to distract the clerk about 4 p.m. Friday.
An unseen suspect snuck in the liquor store’s back door and attempted to steal bottles of alcohol from the liquor cabinet, according to Morgan Hill Police Sgt. Jerry Neumayer.
However, the store’s clerk heard noise coming from the back storage area, and interrupted the burglary, police said.
The suspects fled without stealing anything. Police have no suspects.
