Tiburon police arrest suspect in overnight garage burglary

A San Francisco man pleaded not guilty Feb. 6 to charges stemming from an overnight garage burglary in Tiburon, including one felony count of second-degree burglary, two misdemeanor counts and two sentence enhancements based on prior felony convictions.

Martin Hernandez Gutierrez, 33, was arrested shortly after midnight Feb. 4 after Tiburon police say he broke into a garage on Lagoon View Drive and stole a high-end e-bike worth $10,000. Police also suspect him in a theft from an unlocked vehicle nearby.

Gutierrez was booked into Marin County Jail that morning on $50,000 bail and remained in custody at The Ark’s press time; a pre-trial release hearing is set for Feb. 10.

The Marin District Attorney’s Office filed charges Feb. 5, including the burglary felony, misdemeanor counts of receiving or possessing stolen property and possession of a controlled substance, and two special allegations for prior serious or violent felony convictions under California’s three-strikes law.

The incident began about 12:30 a.m. when Tiburon police responded to Lagoon View Drive for someone breaking into a garage, according to the Tiburon Police Department.

The homeowner told officers a man had entered his garage and taken an e-bike worth about $10,000, then ran away. The homeowner chased him, and the man abandoned the bike roughly 50 yards away before continuing to run. The homeowner recovered the bike and gave officers a detailed description.

Detective Sgt. Rob Law said the homeowner received an alert from his security camera.

“When he checked the notification, he discovered that somebody was walking up his driveway and into the garage,” Law said.

With help from the Sheriff’s Office, Mill Valley Police Department and Belvedere Police Department, officers cordoned off the area and searched for the suspect. They found scattered coins, a white hat and two vehicles that appeared to have been broken into.

Just before 2 a.m., Tiburon officers saw a vehicle parked on Ridge Road and stopped the driver, who gave conflicting statements, police said. His clothing matched the description the homeowner had provided and what appeared on the surveillance video. Officers identified him at the scene as Gutierrez and arrested him.

Police found suspected methamphetamine, several coins, eight stolen credit cards belonging to a Vistazo East Street resident and other evidence believed tied to nearby vehicle thefts in Gutierrez’s car.

Law said police do not believe the crimes are part of a larger pattern.

“It looks like he was just an opportunist coming through town and (this was) isolated,” Law said. “We don’t have any other suspects or any ongoing burglaries or thefts or anything like that in the area.”

While the homeowner chased the suspect, Law said police typically advise against that.

“Generally, when somebody calls and says they are in pursuit of a suspect or they are following somebody who may have committed a crime, we generally tell them to back off and find a safe place and just be a good witness,” Law said. “We don’t like the public to be chasing down suspects, but luckily no one was hurt. Luckily, it worked out in the end.”