Prowler was carrying wooden club with spikes near several homes in Goshen
TULARE COUNTY – A local prowler was prepared to go Medieval on anyone who got in his way.
Throughout the last week, several residents in Ivanhoe called to report a prowler. Deputies used witness and victim reports and surveillance video from previous incidents to identify Alberto Lopez.
A Prowler in Goshen was carrying this 3-foot long wooden club with spikes nailed through it. Photo courtesy of the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office.
On Dec. 19, deputies found and arrested Lopez who was wearing a “Straight Out of Visalia” shirt and holding a homemade mace, a three-foot long wooden club with nails driven through the top as spikes. He was also, for some unexplained reason, carrying ammunition.
Lopez is a felon on probation and had an active warrant for prowling and bringing contraband into a jail facility. He was arrested and booked for prowling, felon in possession of ammunition and possession of a prohibited weapon.
Anyone with any information is urged to contact Deputy Birkner or Sergeant Nicholson at 559-733-6218. Anonymous information about this crime can be reported via email to [email protected] or through the Tipnow app.
Sheriff’s Log
Wednesday, Dec. 18
Just before 3 p.m., deputies responded to the Goshen Market, 30900 Camp Drive in Goshen, for an armed robbery in progress by a man wearing a ski mask holding a knife. The suspect, 18-year-old Miguel Mendoza, ran away from the scene as deputies were arriving. He was found in the area of Woodbine Avenue and Road 71 and ran away from deputies. They caught him while trying to jump over a fence.
Thursday, Dec. 19
Around 8:40 p.m., deputies were called to the Visalia Sales Yard, 29660 Road 152 in Visalia, for a burglar alarm. When they arrived, they saw an entry door leading to a kitchen area had been pried open. Video surveillance at the scene captured two suspects arriving in a mid-size SUV. One suspect then tried to steal an ATM machine, but failed. Deputies are trying to identify the vehicle and the suspects captured in the surveillance video.
