Suspect Arrested After Crash, Attempt to Hide

After crashing his white Ford Thunderbird into a C Street residence, a drug suspect fled into a nearby Oxnard home early Saturday and pretended to be asleep in a bedroom.

But police officers on the chase weren’t fooled.

Shortly after 2 a.m., officers found $3,000 worth of methamphetamines hidden in the Thunderbird’s trunk and a handgun inside the car, police said. About half an hour later, Mark Jason Newfang, 25, of Camarillo, was arrested for transporting a controlled substance, possession of a weapon, and hit and run, according to police reports.

The arrest culminated a series of events that began about 2 a.m., when a resident called to complain about a street disturbance in the 900 block of West Douglas Avenue, police said. When officers arrived, they saw the Thunderbird speeding from the area, according to police reports.

Two officers tried to stop the vehicle by flashing their overhead lights, but the driver did not stop. Several minutes later, the Thunderbird smashed into a residence in the 700 block of North C Street, police said.

“He probably just lost control of his vehicle,” said Oxnard Police Officer Sharon Gerding, who responded to the initial call. “Once he pulled away from us, he was going pretty fast. We weren’t in pursuit of him, but he probably saw another police car and panicked and collided with the house.”

Police said the suspect fled on foot after the collision.

A pursuing officer had gotten a look at the suspect, so police conducted a manhunt. According to police reports, Newfang was taken into custody without incident after officers found him acting as if he were asleep in someone else’s unoccupied bedroom. Police said it didn’t appear that the suspect knew the residents of the home he used as a hide-out.