Suspects Facing Charges Following Separate Incidents Involving Unprovoked Assaults on Senior Citizens
WATSONVILLE, CA — Law enforcement officers recently responded to two separate incidents involving unprovoked assaults on senior citizens and a firearm recovery during a traffic stop.
In the first incident, a 31-year-old man was arrested following an unprovoked assault on two individuals, a 68-year-old woman and a 72-year-old man, who were walking in the 300 block of Union Street on Thursday morning. The female victim sustained a broken nose during the encounter. Officers arrested the suspect, identified as 31 year old Watsonville resident Tony Rivera, on charges including elder abuse, causing injury, and violation of probation.
In a separate and unrelated incident on Monday evening, officers initiated a traffic stop on a Chevy Trailblazer near Main Street and S. Green Valley Road due to a vehicle code violation. Upon contacting the driver, identified as 19-year-old Gerardo Ortiz of Las Lomas, officers determined he was operating the vehicle under the influence of alcohol. A subsequent search of the vehicle revealed a loaded firearm. Ortiz faces driving under the influence (DUI) and firearm-related charges.
