Here's a roundup of recent incidents and announcements from Ventura County agencies:
Highway 101 hit-and-run causes major injuries
A 51-year-old Ventura man suffered major injuries when he was struck by a hit-and-run driver while trying to help a stranded motorist along Highway 101 in Ventura early Saturday, authorities said.
At around 2:34 a.m., the man was trying to help another driver whose disabled vehicle was partially stuck in the right lane of the southbound freeway north of the Victoria Avenue offramp, the California Highway Patrol reported.
Another southbound vehicle struck the Ventura man and fled the scene, CHP officials said. The make and model of the suspect vehicle weren't known Saturday.
The victim was taken by ambulance to Ventura County Medical Center with major injuries. No update on his condition was available.
The incident is under investigation by the CHP's Ventura office. Anyone with information can call 805-662-2640.
Sheriff's office issues commemorative badges
Deputies with the Ventura County Sheriff's Office may be sporting a new badge this year.
For the agency's 150th year of operation, a special badge was created that harkens back to the original badge worn by deputies in 1873, officials said in a release.
The badge boasts a silver deputy star within a circular green border. Along the top of the border are the words "150 years of service," with the years 1873-2023 stamped below. The silver star is exactly like an 1873 badge, officials said.
Another bit of new gear - cowboy hats - were OK'd when Sheriff Jim Fryhoff took office on Jan. 2.
A photo released with the badge announcement shows a lawman wearing both a cowboy hat and the historic badge.
Deputies can wear the commemorative badges until the end of the calendar year.
Attempted murder conviction for 2021 shooting
A 32-year-old Bakersfield man was found guilty of attempted murder Wednesday for a 2021 shooting in Oxnard.
On Aug. 28, 2021, Raymond Reyes fired four rounds at the victim near South M and West Poplar streets, prosecutors said. One bullet hit the victim in the back, causing extensive injuries. Another bullet went into a nearby home. Reyes was a known gang member, authorities said. The victim was not a documented gang member.
A jury found Reyes guilty of attempted murder, shooting at an inhabited dwelling and two firearms offenses, according to the Ventura County District Attorney's Office. Jurors also found five of the crimes were committed to benefit a gang. Reyes had a prior strike for a 2011 carjacking conviction in Kern County.
The case was prosecuted by Deputy DA Hayley Moyer of the agency's major crimes and gang unit.
Reyes is slated for sentencing in Ventura County Superior Court on April 13.
Pizza delivery driver robbed
Detectives with the Ventura County Sheriff's Camarillo bureau arrested a man suspected of robbing a pizza delivery driver last month.
On Jan. 30, the victim was delivering a pizza in the 800 block of Rosewood Avenue in Camarillo shortly after 6:30 p.m. The order had been made online.
When the delivery driver arrived, he was pepper sprayed by the suspect, according to sheriff's officials. The suspect reportedly stole the food and fled.
The victim ran after the suspect until the pepper spray overwhelmed him. He provided a description of the suspect and the suspect's vehicle to deputies.
On Wednesday, the suspect, a 32-year-old described as transient, was arrested in Camarillo in an unrelated suspicious vehicle case that included possession of pepper spray, with his car towed during the arrest.
Investigators noticed the suspect and his vehicle matched descriptions from the Jan. 30 incident. Detectives conducted a warrant search of the vehicle on Thursday and found evidence linking the man to the robbery, authorities said.
While still in custody for the unrelated incident, the man was subsequently arrested on suspicion of robbery in the pizza case. He remained in Ventura County jail as of Saturday night in lieu of $200,000 bail.
Items may be updated.
This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Roundup: Man hit while helping on Hwy 101, new sheriff's badge, more
