Friend Tried to Foil Arrest, Police Say

A 25-year-old man has been jailed on suspicion of trying to free his friend from a drunk-driving arrest by having sheriff’s deputies dispatched on a phony emergency call.

Curt Klotz, 25, was in Ventura County Jail on Friday night on suspicion of reporting a false emergency. Klotz’s friend, Christopher Richie, 30, also was in jail on suspicion of drunk driving and driving with a suspended license. Both are Thousand Oaks residents.

The incident unfolded Thursday when deputies pulled over Richie and Klotz about 11 p.m. on Thousand Oaks Boulevard near Westlake High School, Sheriff’s Capt. Rod Thompson said.

While Deputy Mark Grambling administered a sobriety test to Richie, the driver, Klotz asked permission to walk to a nearby restroom. Instead of using it, though, he found a pay telephone and anonymously called 911 to report that shots had been fired and that a person was injured in the area, Thompson said.

Deputy Jerardo Gomez responded and noticed the sobriety test. The deputy then interviewed Klotz and listened again to the 911 tape, Thompson said. Gomez matched Klotz’s voice to the anonymous caller’s, Thompson said.

“He’s trying to keep his buddy out of jail, and he in turn gets himself jailed,” Thompson said. “It’s kind of foolish.”