Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office personnel and other law enforcement agencies are currently in the area of the 57000 block of Bell Springs Road seeking an armed suspect associated with a vehicle fire that began around 3:00 p.m.
A Nixle alert issued by the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office indicates the individual being sought is a male, between 30-40 years old, approximately 5′ 4”, bald, and “last seen wearing a white tank top and blue jeans carrying a rifle.”
As per scanner traffic, unmanned aerial vehicles (drones) are being used to search the area.
Laytonville Fire Department Chief Sue Carberry confirmed the vehicle fire started at 3:00 p.m. and did not spread into nearby vegetation.
Scanner traffic indicated a full wildland fire air response was dispatched to the vehicle fire and has since returned since the fire was successfully extinguished. The vehicle that burned was a Ford F-250 truck.
UPDATE 6:01 p.m.: Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office Captain Greg Van Patten told us there were actually no shots fired associated with this incident and the law enforcement response is related to a possible domestic violence incident. Those involved reportedly “left in a car before we got there,” Captain Van Patten added. He said deputies used a UAV to confirm there was no one with a firearm in the immediate area of the burning vehicle.
