Petaluma, CA - Responding to complaints from neighbors and users of the Lynch Creek Trail of suspicious activity and individuals gathering and at times blocking access to trail users, officers used an all terrain vehicle to patrol the area this afternoon.
At approximately 3:05pm, officers contacted a group on the trail near the US101 overcrossing. During their investigation they arrested Daniel Lynch, age 44, from Petaluma and Wendy Laino, age 40, with prior addresses in Cloverdale and Petaluma for possession of more than 21 ounces of methamphetamine for sale, possession of methamphetamine, violation of probation, and polluting a waterway. Both subjects were transported to county jail.
We would like to thank the area residents and users of the trail who were communicating about this issue on nextdoor and the concerned community member that brought the situation to our attention. We understand in the last few weeks this suspicious and concerning activity along the trail has made some users feel the trail is unsafe. Officers will continue to patrol the trail on a regular basis and will have a notable presence tomorrow during bike to work/school day.
Anyone using the trail who sees any suspicious or criminal activity is asked to report it immediately to the police department so we can investigate. Just as a reminder, conversations on nextdoor are not visible to your police department staff so we ask that you encourage nextdoor users to call the police at 707.778.4373 or 911 if appropriate.
