Public safety briefs – Crash on Highway 101 involved motorcycle

THOUSAND OAKS – A major-injury crash on northbound Highway 101 in Thousand Oaks Saturday afternoon blocked some lanes in both directions, according to California Highway Patrol reports.

The accident was reported shortly after 3:30 p.m. on the northbound freeway just south of Lynn Road.

Initial reports indicate at least one motorcycle rider was down in the road and three vehicles may have been involved.

The two left lanes on the northbound side and the left lane on the southbound side were blocked for a time as Ventura County Fire Department and ambulance personnel, as well as CHP officers and other responders, worked the scene. All lanes had reopened by about 4:40 p.m.

As of 7:30 p.m., the CHP listed the accident as causing major injuries. No other details were immediately available.

Felon on parole had assault weapon, police say

OXNARD – Police in Oxnard arrested three people after a traffic stop Thursday, including a man on state parole for firearms possession who was reportedly carrying an assault weapon, authorities said.

Officers with the Oxnard Police Department's gang unit pulled over a car at around 8 p.m. Thursday in the 400 block of West Kamala Street, near the crossing with E Street. Three passengers were reportedly documented members of an Oxnard criminal street gang, according to police, including two, age 22 and 25, with arrest warrants.

A third man, also 25, was on California Department of Corrections parole for firearms possession. He also had six prior felony gun convictions, officials said. All three men were Oxnard residents.

A search of the car turned up a .40-caliber Glock handgun that had been modified to fire in full auto as well as two loaded, high-capacity 29-round magazines, according to police.

The parolee was arrested on suspicion of possessing a dangerous assault weapon and other firearms violations. The other two passengers were arrested on their warrants.

Anyone with information about criminal activity in Oxnard is encouraged to contact police at 805-385-7600 or online at oxnardpd.org, where you can click on the "report suspicious activity" link.

Man pleads guilty to insurance fraud

VENTURA COUNTY – A Fillmore farm business owner pleaded guilty to multiple violations of felony workers' compensation fraud that could land him in jail for up to eight years, authorities said.

Robert Zermeno Delara, 50, changed his plea Friday in Ventura County Superior Court, according to court records and the Ventura County District Attorney's Office. He also admitted to multiple special allegations related to the violations, including that the theft totaled more than $100,000.

Delara owns Pacific Coast Farm Labor and B&R Farm Labor, businesses that provide farm labor for local farms and other agricultural companies. The Fillmore man was charged in November 2020 for violations that took place between May 2013 and July 2018, court records show.

In his change of plea, Delara admitted to discouraging his employees from obtaining medical care for on-the-job injuries and admitted to making material misrepresentations to his insurance carriers about the injuries to lower his insurance premiums.

District Attorney Erik Nasarenko said in a statement his agency would not tolerate abuse of farmworkers.

"Any employer who conceals workplace injuries to fraudulently obtain lower insurance rates will be held accountable," he said.

At the time the case was filed, $1 million was seized from Delara's bank accounts and assets in connection with the fraud, according to the district attorney's office. The assets will be liquidated to pay victim restitution and fines as a condition of his plea.

Delara's sentencing is set for 9 a.m. June 2 in courtroom 23. He faces a maximum sentence of eight years in jail, according to the district attorney's office.