Hollister
– A local man was arrested Tuesday morning following the alleged
carjacking and kidnapping of four teenagers Monday night.
Hollister – A local man was arrested Tuesday morning following the alleged carjacking and kidnapping of four teenagers Monday night.
Esteban Hernandez, 25, was arrested at 9am Tuesday on suspicion of four counts of felony kidnapping, and one count each of felony carjacking, felony probation violation and misdemeanor resisting arrest, San Benito County Sheriff’s Deputy Jason Lei said.
Four Hollister teens were driving a vehicle in the 800 block of Monterey Street Monday night when a man approached their vehicle and demanded a ride, said Officer Rosie Betanio, a spokeswoman for the Hollister Police Department. The man threatened to kill them and took their keys, she said.
Authorities received a call at 10:26pm from a man on McCloskey Road in Hollister who said he had witnessed another man and four teenagers pull up to a home, Lei said. The man got out of the vehicle and went inside to look for someone, Lei said.
In an interview with the teens after the incident, deputies were told that the man jumped back into the vehicle after searching the house and told the them that he was wanted by authorities, Lei said.
He then ordered the teenagers to drop him off at the labor camp on Southside Road, and let them go, Lei said.
Deputies briefly chased the man on foot near the labor camp at approximately midnight, but were unable to catch him, Lei said. Deputies then staked out the labor camp and arrested Hernandez the following morning, Lei said.
“It’s not very often that you get a serious crime like this, especially involving kids,” Lei said.
Hernandez is being held at the San Benito County Jail in lieu of $351,000 in bail, according to jail personnel. If convicted of carjacking, Hernandez could face up to nine years in state prison, according to the California Penal Code.
Michael Van Cassell covers public safety for the Free Lance. He can be reached at 831-637-5566 ext. 335 or mv*********@fr***********.com.
