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Arrests made in connection with Lompoc home-invasion robbery

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Arrests have been made in connection with the break-in at a Lompoc home earlier this month where a man was beaten and robbed.

The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office says Ruben Jesse Gomez, Jr. and Javier Castillo Vasquez, both 38 and from Santa Maria, are being held in Santa Barbara County Jail on $1 million dollars bond after search and arrest warrants were served recently in connection with the case.

Their arrests come after the sheriff’s office said a 65-year-old man was beaten and robbed in the early-morning hours of Jan. 12 when a man rang the victim’s doorbell and told him he was with the sheriff’s office and needed to speak with him.

Ruben Jesse Gomes, Jr. and Javier Castillo Vasquez
Ruben Jesse Gomez, Jr. and Javier Castillo Vasquez

 

It happened at the victim’s home in the Lasalle Canyon Road area near Lompoc.

Authorities say the victim, after opening the door, was attacked and struck multiple times with a gun and something similar to a nightstick.

The victim tried to fight back, but “The suspect demanded money and guns and said he would harm the victim’s family if his needs were not met,” the sheriff’s office said in an earlier press release.

After giving the suspect money from his pockets, authorities say the suspect then bound the victim’s hands and left the bedroom.

The victim was able to free himself and used a baseball bat to try to fight off the suspect but the suspect was able to get the bat from the victim who was then beaten with it, the sheriff’s office said.

The victim’s injuries included cuts to his face and a fractured skull. He was able to drive to a nearby home to get help. He is expected to survive his injuries, authorities said.

While officials only mentioned one suspect in initial reports, they announced Monday two arrests in connection with the case.

They say one of the men was known to the victim prior to the incident.

Both Gomez and Vasquez face charges of attempted murder, robbery of an inhabited dwelling, kidnapping, elder abuse and conspiracy.

Additional details related to the case have not been released.