Detectives are still trying to sort out the details of a bizarre incident in Santa Barbara County, in which a man fleeing authorities jumped into the ocean, and had to be rescued.
Santa Barbara County Sheriff's investigators say German Sotelo apparently stopped at Carpinteria's Viola Fields Monday night to use a bathroom, and left his six year old daughter in his car. Detectives say the child waited for several hours, and when the man failed to return, got out of the vehicle and asked a janitor for help.
Deputies started to search the area, and a K-9 and helicopter were called in to help. The helicopter's crew spotted the 39 year old man walking on the beach, but Sotelo jumped in the ocean and tried to flee the area.
Firefighters and the Coast Guard were called in to help. He was pulled from the water about an hour later, and taken to a hospital for treatment. Detectives say Sotelo is facing a child endangerment charge.
