John Holland
The Modesto Bee
STANISLAUS COUNTY, Calif. — A helicopter crew Wednesday located and rescued a man who was reported shot two days earlier in the remote hills west of Patterson.
The unidentified man was taken to a local hospital and is expected to recover, Sgt. Luke Schwartz of the Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Department said by phone.
The victim had been working in an illegal marijuana plantation near Frank Raines Regional Park when he was shot during a robbery by several armed men, according to a news release.
The department is not disclosing exactly when the man was shot, nor his injuries or information about the suspects. Other people at the plantation tried “to treat the wounded man as best as they could,” the release said.
A video from the department shows a rescuer and the victim being hoisted in a harness up to the helicopter at about 11 a.m. He was then taken to an ambulance.
The park is about 10 miles by air from Patterson and reached by the winding Del Puerto Canyon Road.
Two calls for help Monday
Deputies first responded to the scene after an anonymous call at about 3 a.m. Monday about a gunshot victim in the canyon. The caller provided a “vague” description of the area, and the call was lost, the release said. The phone is a type that can be used only to call 911, so deputies could not reach the caller.
Authorities searched without success, then another anonymous call at about 6 a.m. Monday gave the same information. The search continued into Monday afternoon but was ended due to the large area and scant information.
A third call about the shooting came in around midnight Wednesday. This time, deputies were able to meet the caller in a parking lot on Rogers Road in Patterson. That person told them about the robbery and efforts by witnesses to treat the wounded man, the release said.
Search resumes with SWAT, helicopter
The search was slow to resume because of “inconsistent statements and complex directions coming from the reporting party,” the release said. It finally got going at about dawn Wednesday, with help from the helicopter, drones, the SWAT team and the Special Vehicle Operations Unit.
The helicopter crew spotted the victim in the late morning and he waved them down to the site, the release said. SWAT team members got off the helicopter and started providing medical aid.
The victim was described only as a Latino is his late 20s. His place of residence is unknown.
People with information about the case can contact Detective Detective Kamila Sulkowski at 209-525-7032.
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