On April 28, 2021 around 0730 AM, Deputies were dispatched to a vehicle burglary that just occurred in the 500 block of N. San Pedro Road in Santa Venetia. Deputies learned from the reporting party a female dressed in all black rummaged through two unlocked vehicles and took numerous items about 30 minutes prior. Deputies obtained a vehicle description and started to canvas the area.

Simultaneously to the Deputies responding to the reported vehicle burglary, an unknown female dressed in all black entered the lobby entrance to the Marin County Jail, dropped a duffel bag with unknown contents, pulled the fire alarm and ran out of the Jail lobby. 

Deputies attempted to locate the female and also ascertain what was in the duffel bag. Due to the circumstances surrounding how the duffel bag was dropped and the unknown contents, the UC Berkeley Bomb Squad was requested to the scene out of an abundance of caution. The areas surrounding the Marin County Jail and parking lot were closed during the investigation.

During this time, a Deputy checking the surrounding area was stopped by a CA State Parks employee and told an unknown person just lit a large pile of clothing items on fire near China Camp and drove away in a vehicle. The description of a vehicle was similar to the one reported in the theft from earlier in the morning. 

Around 0845 AM, a Deputy monitoring N. San Pedro Road located the vehicle associated with the multiple incidents. The vehicle was stopped and the driver, Judith Garcia, was taken into custody. The vehicle Garcia was driving was an unreported stolen vehicle. Garcia was arrested and booked into the Marin County Jail for the following charges: 

148.4(a)(1) PC – False Fire Alarm

488 PC – Petty Theft (3 counts)

496 D PC – Possession of Stolen Vehicle

452 (D) PC – Causing Fire

A bail enhancement in the amount of $50,000 was granted by a Marin County Judge. The contents of the duffel bag were determined to be personal items from the stolen vehicle and a set of tire chains by the UC Berkeley Bomb Squad.

No further information will be released at this time. 

Contact: Sgt. Brenton Schneider at b_schneider@marinsheriff.org