Crime & Safety
$17K In Cocaine Seized, Man And Teen Arrested: Watsonville Police
H.A. Hyde Elementary was briefly locked down, and a portion of Mañana Lane was closed while police executed a warrant.
WATSONVILLE, CA — The Watsonville Police Department seized $17,000 in cocaine, took an untraceable gun and knife into evidence and arrested a man and 14-year-old boy while executing a search warrant Tuesday morning.
Nathan Garcia, 23, was booked into Santa Cruz County Jail. The 14-year-old, who was not named because he is a minor, was taken to Santa Cruz County Juvenile Hall, police said.
Garcia owned the loaded gun, and the teen carried a concealed knife, police said.
Find out what's happening in Watsonvillefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Jail booking information for Garcia was not immediately available. Charges were not filed in Santa Cruz County Superior Court as of Tuesday afternoon.
The arrests came soon after police shut down the 100 block of Mañana Lane, where Garcia and the teen were arrested. Police also placed H.A. Hyde Elementary School under lockdown as a precaution for about 15 minutes.
Find out what's happening in Watsonvillefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Police were led to the house after a Sunday afternoon traffic stop. The teen ran out of the car and dropped two backpacks, one of which contained a loaded gun, as he ran, police said.
Officers obtained a search warrant for his home, where police found 249 grams of cocaine.
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