Sheriff’s Office: Escaped jail inmate not at Motel 6, search for murder suspects continues

UPDATE 11/5/2019 10:00 p.m. The Monterey County Sheriff’s Office said SWAT did not find an escaped Monterey County Jail inmate at the Motel 6 in Marina.

They believed murder suspect Jonathan Salazar was at the motel after Marina Police received a tip from a motel employee. The call came in at around 1 p.m. By the time law enforcement arrived, it might have been too late.

“I’m confident that no one left the motel after we got here. That time between them calling and us getting there, he apparently did leave,” said Captain John Thornburg with the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office.

This was an all afternoon effort with Salazar likely absent the whole time. After a couple unsuccessful attempts to call for him, SWAT arrived. SWAT eventually busted their way inside the room.

The Motel 6 and Denny’s were evacuated during the process. People steadily streamed back towards town. KION asked if Salazar might have snuck out with them.

“It was all the employees [who were leaving]. There was nothing in the vehicles. We looked inside the vehicles. [These were all] employees who had stayed behind to assist with what we were doing,” Thornburg said.

There were no reported signs of exit by Salazar in room 235, but the sheriff’s office firmly believes their guy was there.

“The staff from the motel said ‘this is the person. I saw who was staying in that room’,” Thornburg said.

There is also no information on if anyone was with Salazar while he was hiding out.

Investigators are continuing to search for Salazar and the other escaped inmate, Santos Fonseca. Both were in the Monterey County Jail on murder charges.

UPDATE 11/5/2019 3:00 p.m. Captain John Thornburg with the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office said they believe one of the inmates who escaped from the Monterey County Jail is in the Marina Motel 6.

They believe 20-year-old Jonathan Salazar may be the one in the motel.

Thornburg said they do not know if anybody is with the inmate at this time.

The Sheriff’s Office and Marina police evacuated the motel and surrounding area. They are asking the public to avoid the area while law enforcement is there, which could be a few hours.

The two escaped inmates, Salazar and 21-year-old Santos Fonseca, were last seen during a routine check at around 6:30 a.m. Sunday, and at around 8:15 a.m. they were reported missing from their housing unit.

Thornburg believes the inmates found a blind spot in the housing unit and exploited it. He said the two made a hole in a bathroom ceiling and got out in a space between pipes, but escaped the perimeter of the jail through a construction area that did not have the normal secure wiring. Investigators also found some jail issued clothing outside the perimeter, so they did make it outside of the jail.

Thornburg said both men are from the Salinas area and have had gang affiliation to some extent, but were affiliated with opposing gangs.

Anyone with information is asked to call 831-755-6276.

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PREVIOUS STORY: Marina police and the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office are at the Motel 6 on Reservation Road.

The Marina Police Chief tells KION that they cannot confirm whether there is a standoff, but the motel and surrounding area are being evacuated. Police have been at that location since 11:30 a.m.

Law enforcement is asking the public to stay away from the area and expects that the activity could last for a few hours.

The Monterey County Sheriff’s Office is leading the investigation.

We have a crew at the scene gathering information.

This is a developing story. Keep checking back for updates.