“With the help of alert members of the community willing to provide information to police and the help of officers from outside agencies, SLO police officers were able to located and arrest this suspect on attempted homicide charges. We are grateful to these brave officers who put themselves in harm’s way to protect us.” – CSLEA President Alan Barcelona
SAN LUIS OBISPO – On August 17, 2023, law enforcement officers from California State Parks and California Department of Fish and Wildlife responded to assist San Luis Obispo police officers with the capture of a man suspected of shooting an individual in San Luis Obispo and a shooting in Grover Beach.
At 3:27 p.m., the San Luis Obispo Police Department (SLOPD) received reports of a shooting in a parking lot in the 1500 block of Froom Ranch Way in San Luis Obispo. Witnesses saw a man shooting at a vehicle that was driving away. A passenger in the vehicle was struck by a bullet and was driven to a nearby hospital.
Earlier in the day, Grover Beach Police had responded to a shooting at approximately 1 p.m. at 4th Street and Grand Avenue. The armed suspect fled the scene driving a black Ford Mustang with a white stripe. The Grover Beach Police Department released surveillance video of the suspect’s vehicle on social media shortly after the shooting. The suspect and vehicle description in San Luis Obispo matched that of the shooting that occurred in Grover Beach.
At approximately 4:20 p.m., SLOPD received a tip from an alert resident that the suspect vehicle from the Grover Beach shooting was in the 1900 block of San Luis Ranch Road. Officers and deputies from the
- San Luis Obispo Police Department,
- San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office,
- California State Parks,
- California Fish and Wildlife,
- and CHP
responded and located the suspect vehicle. After a brief search, the suspect was located nearby and surrendered. He was identified as Joshua Arnold, 41, of Visalia.
When Arnold was arrested, he was not carrying a weapon, but police were advised that two other people were inside the residence and possibly armed. The SLO Regional SWAT team responded and secured the area to determine whether there were armed individuals inside the residence. The residence was searched and found to be empty.
A handgun was later recovered at a nearby model home that the suspect had reportedly entered prior to being captured by police.
Arnold was transported to the San Luis Obispo County Jail and booked on charges of attempted homicide (2 counts), attempted carjacking, felon in possession of a handgun, and felon in possession of ammunition.
SLOPD expressed its gratitude to their partners in law enforcement who assisted them with the apprehension of this suspect.
