Four young men accused of trespassing at the former Courtesy
Chevrolet building – one of whom was bitten in the face by Morgan
Hill’s police dog – have pleaded not guilty and will appear in
court Thursday for a pre-trial proceeding.
Alleged child molester in court Thursday
Alejandro Cortez, 21 of Gilroy, is scheduled to enter a plea to charges that he sexually assaulted a 12-year-old girl Thursday in Santa Clara County Superior Court.
Arrested March 18 at his home in Gilroy, Cortez is charged with four counts of lewd or lascivious acts on a child younger than 14. The alleged incidents happened about two years ago in Morgan Hill.
During the investigation into the sexual assault crimes, police also discovered that Cortez was allegedly involved in a hit and run accident that was reported Jan. 25, 2008, and was on active probation for assault with a deadly weapon.
He also faces charges for the hit and run incident.
When police arrived at his home to arrest him, Cortez attempted to flee by climbing out a window in the back of the house.
Cortez is currently in custody in Santa Clara County Jail in lieu of $500,000.
Alleged Big 5 burglars in court Thursday
Three San Jose residents suspected of participating in the burglary of Big 5 Sporting Goods will appear in court Thursday.
Ramiro Lozano, 34, Roxanne Villabrille, 35, and Alexis Tomines, 28, are accused of stealing seven rifles from the store at Cochrane Plaza by cutting a hole in the wall the morning of March 12.
Lozano and Villabrille are also accused of growing more than three dozen marijuana plants in their home on Fontanelle Drive in San Jose. They are charge with buying or receiving stolen property and marijuana cultivation. Lozano faces an additional seven counts of grand theft, according to Santa Clara County District Attorney’s spokeswoman Amy Cornell. Villabrille is also charged with buying, receiving, concealing or withholding stolen property, and one count of possession of marijuana for sale.
Tomines was arrested hours after the burglary as he was moving the stolen firearms for Lozano, according to police, and he is charged with seven counts of grand theft, one count of possession of a firearm by a felon, and six counts of buying or receiving stolen property. Tomines is out of jail on an $80,000 bond.
A female employee of Big 5 opened the store on the morning of March 12 to see a hole cut in the wall near the rifle section, and saw that some of the firearms were missing. A surveillance tape shows the hole being cut, and an arm reaching through to retrieve the guns. The hole was cut from the adjacent rental unit, which was entered using a “pry tool,” according to case files.
Police and authorities from the Regional Auto Theft Task Force, acting on unspecified tips, staked out Lozano’s home shortly after the burglary. They watched Tomines arrive, and watched him and Lozano load a long black duffel bag into the trunk of Tomines’ car. He was pulled over minutes after leaving the home, and the guns were found in his possession when the car was searched.
Police then returned to Lozano’s home later that day with a search warrant. He was not at home, but authorities forced their way in and found a trove of stolen items and 37 marijuana plants, according to police reports.
Found at the home were electronic products including iPods, Guitar Hero video game guitars, several PlayStation and xBox games, and a video projector – all stolen from the Radio Shack store in Morgan Hill in December 2008, police say.
Police determined that other suspicious items found in the home had been previously reported lost or stolen from the businesses and individuals to whom they belonged. Several victims were from Morgan Hill and Gilroy.
Villabrille is out of jail on a $250,000 bond, and Lozano is still in custody in lieu of $1 million bail.
Attorneys for Villabrille and Tomines have said their clients plan to plead not guilty.
Chevrolet trespassers in court Thursday
Four young men accused of trespassing at the former Courtesy Chevrolet building – one of whom was bitten in the face by Pax, Morgan Hill’s police dog – have pleaded not guilty and will appear in court Thursday for a pre-trial proceeding.
Wesley Aatlo, 20, and Sergio Salciccia, 20, face charges of trespassing and resisting or delaying an officer. Thomas Tirey, 20, and Michael Solorio, 20, are charged with trespassing. All of the charges are misdemeanors.
The four were arrested Aug. 29 after police responded to a burglar alarm at the vacant building on Laurel Drive on the west side of U.S. 101. Tirey and Solorio were arrested while walking away from the building. Aatlo and Salciccia were arrested on the roof after police searched the building’s interior with the Morgan Hill K-9 unit.
Aatlo was bitten by the police dog because he did not respond to commands to show his hands, Sgt. Jerry Neumayer said shortly after the incident.
Police initially booked all four young men on commercial burglary, but the District Attorney’s office found no evidence of burglary and charged them with the misdemeanors.
