Police have captured a kidnapping/carjacking suspect they had been searching for since Wednesday evening. At approximately 6 p.m. Nov. 6, police took Grover Beach resident Ryan Soqui into custody at a rest stop in Gaviota, Ca., near Highway 101.
Earlier on Friday, police received information that Soqui was going to Santa Barbara to visit a friend, Chris Newman. They conducted surveillance on Newman’s car, a white Toyota Camry. After some time, police confirmed that Newman had a male passenger in the car, later confirmed to be Ryan Soqui. Police found a black and chrome BB gun that matched the description of the gun used in the carjacking.
Police suspect Soqui of being responsible for the kidnapping, carjacking and robbery of Cal Poly student Yi Tak Choi on Wednesday night on Campus Way near the Health Center.
The Cal Poly campus was bustling with people as the men’s soccer game was about to end. Choi was driving a silver 2000 Audi A6 and was allegedly approached by a man from outside her car while she was in stop-and-go traffic near a stop sign. According to police, he asked for directions through a rolled-down car window.
Bill Watton, the Chief of Police at the University Police Department, said that despite numerous people being around, the situation would not have appeared threatening or abnormal to witnesses.
Soqui then entered Choi’s car and made her drive away at gunpoint.
“She was very fearful at that point. He pulled out a handgun near the area of Foothill and California and told her to go South on the freeway and exited at Los Osos,” Watton said.
After switching to the driver’s seat, Soqui ordered the girl to take him to an ATM, where she could withdraw money, Watton said. The girl directed him back to an ATM machine on Foothill Blvd.
Police say Soqui waited in the car as the girl walked up to the ATM to withdraw money. Seeing an opportunity for escape, the girl sprinted to Nucci’s, a restaurant located on Foothill Blvd. and within close proximity to the ATM. When Soqui saw her enter the restaurant, he took off in her car.
Capt. Chris Staley of the San Luis Obispo Police Department said that the victim made the right choices to best ensure her safety.
“My take on it is that she did the right thing by listening to his instructions and cooperating with him initially. She took the opportunity when she saw it to flee the (suspect), which was a good decision,” Staley said.
Soqui allegedly drove the car to Grover Beach, where a sheriff deputy recognized the vehicle around 10:15 p.m. A short pursuit ensued. The car Soqui was driving eventually went over an embankment and off the road. When the authorities got to the car, Soqui had already exited. They did, however, find that somewhere along the way, Soqui had picked up a passenger, who allegedly was not involved in the crime. After detaining the passenger, authorities tracked Soqui to an abandoned house that they suspected he was hiding in, Watton said.
Setting up a border around the house, authorities called the regional S.W.A.T team before entering the house around 3:30 Thursday morning. When they entered the house, however, Soqui was nowhere to be found.
After police were unable to find Soqui, they received a tip on Nov. 5 that he may have gone South to the Los Angeles area. San Luis Obispo police officers went to Los Angeles and searched places that he had been known to frequent in conjuction with Los Angles police officers but were unsucessful.
The next day police received the tip that resulted in his arrest; Soqui was arrested for carjacking, kidnapping and robbery. He is being held at San Luis Obispo County Jail.
Bethany Kegeris, a nutrition senior, said that she is going to take extra precautions, including staying out of dark alleyways, always locking doors and always trying to travel in groups.
“I think that it’s a reality check that it can happen anywhere and that it can happen to anyone. You would never think that it could happen to you. It’s just scary,” she said.
Watton said students should always be wary of strangers approaching them, especially on a college campus.
“It’s hard to tell students from non-students on campus. It’s easy for someone to blend in. Be wary of people, even if it’s a student, because they could still be dangerous. That doesn’t mean be rude to everyone. Just be careful,” Watton said.
Jeff Bauer, a graphic communication senior, said he also did not expect something like this to happen.
“I’m surprised that it happened on campus. I would have thought that since there were a lot of people around it would have been less likely,” he said. “I probably won’t change anything that I currently do. I feel pretty safe on campus.”
Watton, who has been working for the University Police Department for seven years, said that he has never seen a kidnapping on campus.
“I want people to know that this is a safe campus. It still is. Things like this will happen from time to time,” Watton said. “It’s best to just be prepared. Have an escape route and be aware of what’s around you. Always be thinking, what are you going to do if.”