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Lakeport Police logs: Saturday, Jan. 10
Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026
00:00 EXTRA PATROL 2601100001
Occurred at Lake County Law Library on 3D....
Clearlake Police search for three men who carried out Saturday home invasion robbery
CLEARLAKE, Calif. – The Clearlake Police Department is seeking three men responsible for an early Saturday morning home invasion robbery during which they threatened to kill a child.
A Clearlake Police report said that at 3 a.m. officers responded to a reported home invasion robbery which had just occurred at a residence in the Lakeland Mobile Home Park at Old Highway 53. Officers arrived on scene within a few minutes to find the suspects had fled just prior to the 911 call.
During the investigation officers found out that a 34-year-old male, his 33-year-old girlfriend and their 9-year-old daughter had been asleep inside the residence when they were awakened to the sound of three subjects banging on their front door while announcing “sheriff’s department, search warrant,” according to Sgt. Tim Hobbs.
The three subjects then forced open the front door. Hobbs said all three were wearing badges around their necks, had black bandannas over their lower faces and were holding black handguns.
The men forced the adult victims onto the floor in the living room and began demanding to know the whereabouts of marijuana and money, which the couple denied having, Hobbs said.
One of the men then went into a bedroom and brought the victims' 9-year-old daughter into the living room, according to Hobbs.
The subject pointed his handgun at the child's head and threatened to shoot her if her parents did not tell them where the marijuana and money was. Hobbs said the adult victims again denied having any marijuana or money, as they had none.
The three men ransacked the house and were unable to find marijuana or money. They began talking about being at the wrong house, then left the residence, Hobbs said.
Two of the men fled in a pickup truck headed south on Old Highway 53. The third subject, who did not make it to the vehicle in time, began running south on Old Highway 53, Hobbs reported.
Clearlake Police officers and several Lake County Sheriff's deputies searched the area for several hours, the report said.
During the search, Officer Travis Lenz and his K9 partner “Dex” located evidence related to the crime while tracking the suspect that had fled on foot, Hobbs said.
Police said they are not releasing information about what the recovered evidence is at this time.
All three subjects were described as white male adults who had the lower portions of their faces obscured by the bandannas, with each armed with a black handgun, Hobbs said.
The vehicle two of the men fled in is described as a dark-colored “lifted” Toyota pickup truck with loud exhaust, Hobbs said.
Anyone with information regarding this case is asked to contact Officer Travis Lenz at 707-994-8251, Extension 508.
Board of Supervisors, former sheriff reach final settlement on legal fees case
LAKEPORT, Calif. – The former sheriff's lawsuit against the Board of Supervisors over legal fees in his dispute with the district attorney has been settled.
On Jan. 27, the Board of Supervisors emerged from closed session to vote to accept a negotiated settlement with Frank Rivero regarding the fees to hire him outside counsel, according to County Administrative Officer Matt Perry.
The vote was 3-1, with Rob Brown voting no and Jim Steele recusing himself from the discussion, according to the meeting minutes.
Supervisor Jeff Smith moved to approve the settlement, and was joined in voting yes by colleagues Jim Comstock and Anthony Farrington.
Perry said the total settlement amount to be paid to the Jones and Mayer law firm is $75,000.
On Tuesday, County Counsel Anita Grant received a notice from Rivero's attorney, Paul Coble, that the case had been settled unconditionally.
She said the billing for Rivero's legal fees from Jones and Mayer totaled $87,684.63, more than $12,000 above the figure the board approved.
“Jones and Mayer agreed to a reduced amount,” she said.
Citing state law, in 2012 Rivero requested that the board hired him an outside attorney – due to a conflict of interest for the County Counsel's Office – in his legal issues with District Attorney Don Anderson over an investigation into allegations that Rivero had lied during a 2008 shooting investigation.
Government Code Section 31000.6 requires the Board of Supervisors hire outside legal counsel for the assessor or sheriff to assist “in the performance of his or her duties in any case where the county counsel or the district attorney would have a conflict of interest in representing the assessor or the sheriff.”
The Board of Supervisors had favored Grant using an “ethical wall” – a process for limiting disclosure in the office in order to avoid a conflict – in her office rather than hiring an outside attorney.
However, in 2012 visiting Mendocino County Judge Richard Henderson ordered the Board of Supervisors to hire the outside counsel for Rivero because of the conflict.
In February 2013 Anderson placed Rivero on the “Brady list,” after determining that he had lied about shooting at an unarmed man.
“Brady” refers to the 1963 US Supreme Court decision, Brady v. Maryland, which requires the prosecution to release to criminal defendants any potentially exculpatory evidence, including information about the credibility of peace officers involved in their cases.
Following his placement on the Brady list, Rivero was unsuccessful in his legal attempts to prevent Anderson from releasing the information as he's legally required to do.
In March 2013, the board sought clarification from Henderson about the limits of its requirement to provide Rivero legal counsel.
That May, Henderson clarified his ruling, explaining that he hadn't meant for the county to continue to pay for Rivero's legal fees past the Brady determination.
In July 2013, Rivero appealed the case to the First Appellate District, which in December overturned Henderson's ruling, finding that Rivero was entitled to a more extended period of legal representation in the matter. That decision, initially unpublished, later was published at Rivero's request.
The appellate court then sent the matter back to the trial court, ordering that a “new and different judgment” be entered regarding Rivero's right to the outside legal representation.
The matter had been set for a case management conference on Friday afternoon. Grant said she is not sure if it will remain on the calendar; however, even if it does, it will have no bearing on the case settlement.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
Sheriff's office recruitment events begin Tuesday; outreach scheduled around the county
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The Lake County Sheriff's Office is conducting an outreach campaign to area residents in an effort to fill two dozen empty positions in the agency.
The first of the four “recruitment presentations” at locations throughout the county will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 24, at the Middletown Library, 21256 Washington St.
The other presentations, which also will take place from 7 to 9 p.m., will be held on Tuesday, March 3, at the Brick Hall, 16374 Main St, Lower Lake; Tuesday, March 10, in the Lake County Board of Supervisors chambers on the first floor of the Lake County Courthouse, 255 N. Forbes St., Lakeport; and Thursday, March 19, at Marymount California University, 3700 Country Club Drive in Lucerne.
Undersheriff Chris Macedo said the presentations will cover topics including job descriptions, minimum requirements, benefits, wages and the hiring process.
Macedo said the sheriff's office currently is recruiting for 24 positions.
Those include seven deputy sheriff vacancies, eight correctional officers, two correctional aides, five dispatchers and two law enforcement records technicians.
Keeping positions filled in the agency is an ongoing challenge. “The Lake County Sheriff’s Office has only been fully staffed one time in the last 25 years,” Macedo noted.
For more information, call Macedo at 707-262-4200.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
Lucerne man receives Oregon jail sentence for false police brutality report; punched himself to create injuries
A Lake County, Calif., man has been sentenced to jail in Oregon for making a false police brutality report, which was debunked thanks to holding cell video that showed him punching himself dozens of times.
On Feb. 11 Aleksander Robin Tomaszewski, 33, of Lucerne was found guilty and sentenced to 20 days in the Lane County, Ore., jail, along with 36 months of probation and a $500 fine for attempted coercion, and 20 days in jail and a $100 fine for initiating a false report, according to Sgt. Carrie Carver of the Lane County Sheriff's Office.
Carver said that Tomaszewski was brought to the Lane County Sheriff’s Office on Jan. 9 to be interviewed regarding a separate criminal investigation.
According to Lane County jail records, Tomaszewski had been arrested on Dec. 8 for stalking, violation of a restraining order and contempt of court.
The Jan. 9 interview took place in a room with video and audio recording, both of which were running while he was in the room, Carver said.
After the interview was over, Tomaszewski was left in the holding room alone while the recording continued to run. Carver said he was escorted directly to another holding room just down the hall, where a video recording also was taking place.
When he later was contacted in the second holding room, Tomaszewski – who has visible facial injuries – complained to multiple deputies that he was just assaulted by the detectives who had interviewed him, Carver said.
Carver said the complaint was immediately forwarded for review to the sergeant in charge of detectives.
Tomaszewski – who was interviewed shortly after he made the complaint – provided a statement claiming he was assaulted and said multiple times that he wanted to press charges, Carver said.
In addition, Carver said Tomaszewski also signed the portion of the incident report that warns about initiating a false report.
Carver said the video was reviewed for both holding rooms. The video footage from the second holding room showed Tomaszewski punching himself multiple times in the face.
When he learned that the incident was caught on camera, Tomaszewski admitted that he thought making the claim would get him released, Carver said.
Tomaszewski subsequently was charged with initiating a false report, which is a Class C misdemeanor, and attempted coercion, which is a Class C felony, according to Carver.
In addition to those charges, on Jan. 9 Tomaszewski was arrested on first degree sexual abuse, stalking and contempt of court, Lane County jail records showed.
Last May, Tomaszewski was sentenced in Lake County for violating unlawful stream diversion and unlawfully dumping trash and rubbish within 150 feet of a streambed as part of a marijuana grow in the Double Eagle Ranch subdivision near Clearlake Oaks, as Lake County News has reported: bit.ly/1Du6dK4 .
The case arose from an investigation resulting from a 2012 marijuana bust. At that time, Tomaszewski was arrested after the Sheriff’s Narcotics Task Force and the Sheriff’s Special Weapons and Tactics Team found 170 pounds of processed marijuana in his Lucerne home during the service of a search warrant.