Photo: Stock Image
Uniformed deputies, K9 Units, and the Air Support helicopter team from the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department all arrived in coordinated force in the Isla Vista community adjacent to the UCSB campus on the morning of February 13th …and they weren’t shopping for Valentine chocolates.
According to SBSD Public Information Officer Raquel Zick, the law enforcement show of force took place outside a local residence pursuant to a 911 Emergency Call for Servicethat described a man inside the home “with a 6-month-old child” who was reportedly in danger. Upon arrival at the scene, deputies identified the suspect as 27-year-old Eric Alexander Elija Silva who “had an outstanding Ramey warrant for domestic violence.”
Once deputies “contained the area,” they used a loudspeaker to implore Silva to step outside the house, at which they spotted him “holding the child when he peered out of a window.” After 45 minutes of beseeching Silva to show himself and to “peacefully surrender to arrest,” he suddenly disappeared from view. Deputies at the rear of the home spotted him as he made an attempt to flee the area, whereupon he was summarily apprehended and taken into custody.
Silva was arrested and transported to the Santa Barbara County Northern Branch Jail, where he was charged with domestic violence, felony child cruelty, forcibly preventing a victim from calling 911, felony false imprisonment, and dissuading a witness. He remains in custody with his bail set at $100,000.
