Suspect arrested in UCSC false imprisonment case
Police arrested a Watsonville man Thursday night in connection with the false imprisonment and kidnapping of a woman on the UC Santa Cruz campus.
Officers from the UC Santa Cruz Police Department and Santa Cruz County Anti-Crime Team arrested Jose Calderon Ortiz, 28, of Watsonville, during a traffic stop.
Investigators identified Ortiz based on leads uncovered during their initial investigation.
According to police, at around 12:45 a.m. Thursday, a female student reported that she was waiting for a bus at the Kresge College bus stop on campus when she accepted a ride from a male driver. When they reached the base of campus at High and Bay streets, he failed to stop and let her out of his car. Despite repeated requests, he continued driving. When the vehicle slowed to make a right turn on Mission Street, the woman jumped from the vehicle, suffering minor injuries.
Ortiz was booked into the Santa Cruz County Jail. His car was impounded. The Department of Justice’s Forensic Unit will assist in the collection of evidence.
