A 45-year-old was arrested Tuesday, September 23, for assaulting a man with a hammer in an effort to collect a debt, among other alleged crimes.
According to a report from Santa Barbara Police spokesperson Sgt. Lorenzo Duarte, Gregory Ward confronted a 39-year-old man who owed him a sum of money at the man’s house on the 1100 block of Garden Street around 4 p.m. on Monday, September 22. The debtor apparently did not have the money, and Ward allegedly forced his way into the man’s home, struck him in the arm with a hammer several times, and then fled. The victim was taken to the hospital for his injuries.
The following day, Tuesday, officers patrolling the 200 block of North Quarantina Street spotted Ward, who was already on parole for assault with a deadly weapon. The officers contacted Ward, who they noted had shaved his head. Duarte’s report said that although Ward gave the officers a false name upon first being questioned, they arrested him on charges of assault with a deadly weapon, giving false information to a peace officer, and violating parole.