Safeway shoplifting suspect stymied
Here's the Rap Sheet for Jan. 1, 2016:
NEW YEAR'S EVE PLANS THWARTED: Vodka. Shrimp. Razors. Toothbrushes. Theodore Horton may have been planning a party (and some freshening up afterward) after playing sticky-fingers at a Benicia Safeway store, police say.
But rookie Benicia police Officer Angela Maniego thwarted his New Year's Eve plans.
It all began when Maniego spotted a suspicious car leaving the store at the Solano Square shopping center about 11 p.m. Thursday.
Maniego determined that 35-year-old Horton, the driver, was wanted in Alameda County for burglary and drug charges. Further investigation revealed that the suspect had stolen several thousand dollars of the aforementioned items from the store -- and had property taken from another Safeway store in his car.
Horton was arrested on suspicion of burglary and drug possession and a probation violation. He is being held at Solano County Jail.
Maniego joined the force in September after serving as an investigator with the state Department of Motor Vehicles in Alameda County.
FAIRFIELD HIGH TEACHER BUSTED: A science teacher at Fairfield High School has been arrested for allegedly engaging in sex acts with a 14-year-old student, police said today.
Eric Hankins, 27, of Fairfield was taken into custody about 5 p.m. Thursday after police served a search warrant at his home, said Fairfield police Lt. Robert Lenke.
The arrest was the result of an investigation, launched in December, into allegations that he had been having an inappropriate relationship with the student, whose gender wasn't revealed by police.
Hankins was placed on administrative leave during the police probe. He was booked at Solano County Jail in lieu of $15,000 bail.
SUSPECT GROPES ANOTHER IN POLICE CAR: Seems like a male suspect groped a female suspect when they were both in the back of the same Palo Alto police vehicle.
The incident, reported online today in the Palo Alto Weekly, cites a report issued by Michael Gennaco, Independent Police Auditor for the city of Palo Alto.
It describes the separate arrests of two suspects, one male and the other female, in fall 2013. The man was being held for a probation violation after trying to flee from an officer. The woman was a suspect in a bar assault.
Both suspects ended up being placed in the back of the same police car for a trip from the police station to jail. During the ride, the man slid closer to the woman and twisted his body -- all while his hands were cuffed -- so that his elbow touched her breast.
"While the female’s words and actions make it clear that she is aware of what the male is doing in the backseat and is bothered by it, her overall manner appears to reflect annoyance or irritation, as opposed to fear or agitation," the report says. "However, at one point, she does say, 'That’s sexual harassment. Hey, this guy is touching me.' "
The woman complained to police about what happened, which triggered an internal investigation.
That probe confirmed that the contact between the two arrestees was "inappropriate" and shouldn't have occurred, Gennaco wrote. The department determined that the supervisor who authorized the dual transport had violated department policy, the report says.
The officer driving the two "had not fallen below appropriate standards of care and attentiveness," the report says.
"It seems obvious now, given what happened, that to invest the resources in a separate transport would have been 'better' and worth the inconvenience," Gennaco wrote in his analysis. "But the fact that it was not obvious beforehand makes some sense in the context of past practice and the unexpected audacity of the male suspect."
CRIME FILES: Join me at about 10:45 p.m. Sunday as I chat with SFPD Officer Carlos Manfredi about an armed robbery suspect who is at large.
You can see Henry Lee daily on KTVU. If you have a tip for Henry, send an email to Henry.Lee@foxtv.com or contact him on Twitter