Full Notification

The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the circumstances surrounding an abandoned 30-foot panga boat with two outboard engines that were reported at approximately 6:15 a.m. this morning, February 16, 2015 offshore between Refugio State Beach and Tajiguas Beach in the unincorporated area of Santa Barbara County.  There were also reports of possible subjects and/or items in the water.  Sheriff’s deputies and United States Coast Guard officials responded to search the area with the assistance of a Santa Barbara County Air Support Unit and U.S. Coast Guard helicopter.  A search of the area did not result in the location of any subjects or narcotics but several full containers of fuel were found drifting in the water and on the shore.  Also, a suspected panga boat was observed being towed southbound toward the Santa Barbara Harbor.

Harbor Police and Santa Barbara Police Department officers responded as well. Just outside of the harbor, U.S. Coast Guard personnel intercepted the boat towing the panga and made contact with the persons on board.  The subjects claimed the boat as theirs according to the “law of salvage” and refused to release the boat to U.S. Coast Guard personnel.  The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office, as the original investigating agency, advised the subjects that the boat was considered evidence in a possible drug trafficking case.  59-year-old Erik Bjorklund of Santa Barbara again refused to release the vessel and was arrested for interfering with an investigation.  Bjorklund was cited and released at the scene.

The Sheriff’s Office has possession of the panga and is actively investigating the incident.  If you have any information related to this case or if you see a suspected panga, please call 9-1-1 right away.   

The proper way to gain ownership of a boat under the “law of salvage” is to file a claim with the County which will be reviewed upon completion of any pending investigation and when the vessel is no longer considered evidence.