Early Sunday evening, February 16th, a call by Zoo staff reporting a disturbance at Sequoia Park Zoo was received by the Eureka Police Department.
Zoo staff reported that at about 4:30pm, three subjects had been escorted out of the Barnyard section of the zoo after gaining access to a restricted and unauthorized area. Video surveillance determined that there was an additional subject involved, making it a total of four.
On February 18th, a photo taken from the surveillance video was shared on social media requesting the public’s assistance in identifying the involved suspects. It was determined one of the suspects was a minor and photos were removed from the post.
Eureka Police Department’s Park Ranger and Forensic Analyst were able to positively identify all four subjects with the information received from the community.
On Wednesday, March 5th, two of the subjects were arrested including 19 year old Andres Escareno-Higgins of Eureka, arrested on a Ramey Warrant for felony Vandalism of $400 or more, felony Conspiracy to Commit a Crime and Entering an Animal Enclosure The other arrest was of the minor suspect for felony Vandalism of $400 or more, felony Conspiracy to Commit a Crime, Entering an Animal Enclosure and Petty Theft.
