CARPINTERIA, CA – August 1, 2026 – A months-long investigation into two burglaries at the same Carpinteria-area
cannabis farm has resulted in felony arrest warrants for 17 adult suspects, with four men
already in custody.
According to Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department Public Information Officer
Raquel Zick, the burglaries occurred January 17, 2026 and February 4, 2026 when
crews of “masked suspects stole 2,000 pounds of cannabis valued at more than
$500,000,” from the commercial cultivation site.
Deputies responding to the January 17 burglary arrived after the suspects had already
fled. Although those involved concealed their identities with masks, detectives spent
months following leads, reviewing extensive video surveillance evidence, which
facilitated the identification of multiple suspects, one of whom was killed in an
unrelated homicide, on February 16, 2026.
Following the February 4 burglary, the suspects fled in multiple vehicles. SBSD
deputies promptly launched a coordinated response that ended with two separate
traffic collisions in Carpinteria and the arrests of Abraham Bustos, 22, of Lynwood,
along with two 17-year-old juveniles.
Detectives then identified nine adult suspects involved in the January 17 burglary:
Dvaryae Deshawn Bryant, 22, of Los Angeles; Jeremiah Exzavis Wilson, 23, of
Lancaster; Isaiah Jovan Lee Piggue, 22, of Lancaster; Jerry Angel Meneses Lopez, 26,
of Santa Monica; Justin Lawrence Smith, 26, of Gardena; Kyre Albert Amari Richard,
21, of Palmdale; Larry Eudell Lockridge III, 34, of Los Angeles; London Malik Rogers,
25, of Hawthorne; and Norman Jay Williams, 37, of Los Angeles.
Another eight adults were subsequently identified in connection with the February 4th
burglary: Bustos; Angel Alexis Rivera, 19, of Lynwood; Jathan Douglas Matthews, 18,
of Los Angeles; Justin Edward Castillo, 26, of Cudahy; Katherine Chantal Lopez, 30, of
Los Angeles; Kevin Lamar Hardy, 21, of Bellflower; and Vincent Joshua Rioz, 22, of
Santa Fe Springs.
Those taken into custody on July 27 were transported to Santa Barbara County Jail,
where they were charged with burglary, grand theft and conspiracy with bail set at
$20,000 each.
Two days later, on July 29, Justin Lawrence Smith, Larry Eudell Lockridge III and
Kevin Lamar Hardy were tracked down, taken into custody, transported to Santa
Barbara County Jail, and charged with burglary, grand theft, and conspiracy. Five days
later, Vincent Joshua Rioz was also taken into custody, and joined the others in Santa
Barbara Jail where he was charged with the same felonies.
Bail amounts for all those in custody was set at $20,000 each.
– by F. Scott Faulkner
