PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release:
Date: July 22, 2020
Prepared By/Contact Person: Darren Blevins, Coalinga Chief of Police
On Wednesday July 22, 2020 at approximately 1:56 pm, Officer Ybarra observed a vehicle in the area of Garfield and Polk Street with expired registration. Officer Ybarra initiated a traffic enforcement stop on the vehicle at which time he contacted the driver and two other occupants in the vehicle.
Officer Ybarra requested a secondary unit and once the second office arrived on scene Officer Ybarra asked the occupants to exit the vehicle. At that time, Officer Ybarra conducted a K-9 search for outside the vehicle. K9 Eli alerted on the front passenger side of the vehicle and once the door was opened, he alerted to the front passenger seat.
Officer Ybarra contacted the front passenger and identified her as 40-year-old Coalinga Resident Sarah Rodriguez. Officer Ybarra asked Rodriguez where the narcotics were because his partner had alerted to where she was sitting. Rodriguez then stated she had placed them down her pants. Rodriguez retrieved the items from her pants which was determined to be a meth pipe and 1 gram of methamphetamines.
Rodriguez was placed under arrest and was transported to the Coalinga Police Department where she was booked on charges of being in possession of methamphetamines and meth pipe.
All suspects are considered innocent until found guilty in a court of law.
