A suspect is taken into custody and another suspect was at large Sunday night in Watsonville following an alleged burglary attempt at a marijuana dispensary. Watsonville Police Sgt. Brian Fulgoni said police got a report of an alarm at The Catalyst Cannabis business on the 1300 block of West Beach Street just after 8pm. After police surrounded the area with officers and a K9, they deployed a pair of drones. They then flushed one suspect out while the other ran off. The incident is still under investigation.

Watsonville Police on Sunday used a newly acquired drone to capture a man in the act of allegedly burglarizing a marijuana growing business.

Omar Cortez Ramirez, 40, was charged with first-degree burglary and resisting arrest. He was booked into Santa Cruz County Jail in lieu of $10,000 bail, jail records showed.

In a video taken with the drone, Ramirez could be seen going in and out of the business with multiple bundles of marijuana and then stashing them nearby.

He then attempted to hide when he realized that police had surrounded the building, police said. 

With the help of K9 officer Cruze, however, Ramirez was tracked down, bitten and arrested.

Ramirez stole more than $20,000 worth of marijuana, Watsonville Police spokeswoman Michelle Pulido said.

The incident is one of several burglaries that occurred at  area marijuana dispensaries in the last year. In May, a dozen suspects toting pry bars, and other tools used a vehicle to burst their way into the The Hook dispensary at 11 Hangar Way. 

After loading four vehicles with marijuana products and failing to hoist a safe into one vehicle, they fled. That’s when police from several law agencies gave pursuit north of Highway 1, over Highway 17 and into Hayward. Police managed to capture one vehicle but there were no arrests.

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Tarmo Hannula has been the lead photographer with The Pajaronian newspaper in Watsonville since 1997. More recently Good Times & Press Banner. He also reports on a wide range of topics, including police, fire, environment, schools, the arts and events. A fifth generation Californian, Tarmo was born in the Mother Lode of the Sierra (Columbia) and has lived in Santa Cruz County since the late 1970s. He earned a BA from UC Santa Cruz and has traveled to 33 countries.

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