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Santa Barbara Police are now identifying a man they’ve arrested in connection with a series of armed robberies of parking kiosks in the city.

Three kiosks have been robbed in recent weeks by a disguised man.  Police started checking with nearby businesses which have surveillance cameras, and found clear pictures of the man they think is the robber, which they then made public.

Detectives say a tip led to the arrest of 49 year old Paul Gerald Gradias.  They say they arrested the longtime Santa Barbara resident as he was walking down Salinas Street just before noon yesterday.

A Ventura County teenager is facing charges that he made a bomb, and endangered others following the explosion of the device in a car.

A blast occurred in a vehicle on the 600 block of Avenida del Platino, in Thousand Oaks last Wednesday afternoon.

18-year-old Gary Hayes was seriously injured, and one of two teens in the car with him suffered minor injuries.

Ventura County Sheriff’s Department detectives say the Thousand Oaks teen at first told them someone had thrown a device into the car, causing the explosion.

The say they later discovered the teen had made up the story, and had manufactured the device himself.

In addition to charges he made the explosive device , and endangered the two 17 year olds in the car with him, he’s accused of falsely reporting a crime to the police,

Ventura County Supervisor Linda Parks today changed her party registration from Republican, to Independent to run as an Independent for the new 26th District Congressional Seat in the county.

She says having served in non-partisan political offices for her entire public service career, she’s okay with the idea of running without a party’s backing.

Parks will face Republican State Senator Tony Strickland, Democratic Assemblywoman Julia Brownley, and three other Democrats in the June primary.  In 2010, Assemblywoman Audra Strickland, Tony Strickland’s wife, tried to unseat Parks for her supervisorial seat, with the backing of the local Republican party, but was beaten badly.

The race is expected to be an interesting one with the change in the way the state’s primary election will work, with the two top vote getting candidates facing each other in November, regardless of party affiliation.

Santa Barbara Police are now saying a tip led to the arrest of a man in connection with a series of armed robberies of parking kiosks in the city.

Three kiosks have been robbed in recent weeks by a disguised man.  Police started checking with nearby businesses which have surveillance cameras, and found clear pictures of the man they think is the robber, which they then made public.

They haven’t released his name yet, or any other details of the arrest.

A Santa Barbara County based agency which supplies medicine, and medical supplies to those in need is getting a big present this afternoon from the county’s wine industry.

The Santa Barbara County Vintner’s Foundation is going to present Direct Relief International with a half million dollar check to help with DRI’s global efforts.

The winemakers raised the $500,000 at the American Riviera Wine Auction, which took place February 11^th in Montecito.

After years of using improvised facilities, the Santa Barbara Fire Department is officially opening a modern new administration, and warehouse facility today.

The City rebuilt, and made seismic safety improvements to a building on the 900 block of Chapala Street, which was originally built in the 1930′s.  The City has owned the building since the 1950′s, with part of it used for years as an automotive repair business.  The back of the building was used for fire department storage.  The now refurbished structure includes 4500 square feet of office space, as well as 4400 square feet of warehouse space.

The $1.9 million dollar project is the second phase of an eight year effort funded with redevelopment agency money, which includes the already completed seismic upgrade, and modernization of the city’s main Fire Station Number One.

The question of how far Ventura County should go to use local labor for a major hospital construction project is a hot one for County Supervisors.

KCLU’s Lance Orozco reports that while many like the idea, because of the positive impact for local families, and the region’s economy, the lack of an agreement with unions is leading to costly delays.

Click on link to listen to/download story:  VCMC Construction Labor Debate

An effort to remove feral cats which have been loose on San Nicholas Island, in the Channel Islands which have been impacting endangered birds, and wildlife is complete.  Many of the cats are not only adapting to their new onshore environment, but are proving to be much more adoptable than anticipated.  KCLU’s Lance Orozco updates the story.

Click on link to listen to/download story:  San Nicholas Cats

Link to Live Cat Cam In Ramona:  http://www.humanesociety.org/animal_community/shelters/ffa_wildlife_center/webcam/

A new federal report says the one national park on the South Coast is an important contributor to the region’s economy.

The study says Channel Islands National Park had more than 277,000 visitors in 2010, supported more than 300 jobs, and helped generate more than $24 million dollars in tourism dollars.

Most of the spending was related to lodging, food, and beverage service.

Nationwide, the analysis by a University of Michigan researcher shows 281 million visitors were responsible for $12 billion dollars in direct spending related to 394 national parks.

Ventura, and Los Angeles County Sheriff’s detectives say the breakup of a Conejo Valley burglary ring responsible for hundreds of thousands of dollars in losses has led to six arrests, including that of an L.A County Sheriff’s deputy.

The string of burglaries had been going on for months, with small items like jewelry and cash being targeted.

During a January 30^th burglary in Thousand Oaks, a witness was able to get a partial license plate of a fleeing vehicle.

It led to a three week stakeout of a Los Angeles gang whose members were involved with major crimes like murder, kidnapping, and bank robbery

At one point, investigators say one of the gang members drove to Ventura for a court appearance for an earlier burglary arrest, and then, on his way back to L.A., stopped in Camarillo to commit a new burglary.

Detectives eventually felt they had enough evidence to arrest five of the gang members, with two taken into custody following a high speed pursuit.

While serving a search warrant on one of the gang members, they discovered he was living with a Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Deputy.

While they don’t think Khajana Jones was involved in the burglaries, they say they found stolen items at the home, and believe she knew they were obtained illegally.