EDITOR'S NOTE: This article has been updated with the corrected information available from the Tehama County Jail website regarding Ortega-Pahua's age.
Three people have been arrested in connection to an armed carjacking at a casino in the Corning area over the weekend.
Deputies with the Tehama County Sheriff's Office (TCSO) received a report of a carjacking at Rolling Hills Casino just after 6:30 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 1.
The victim told responding deputies he was carjacked by two men in the parking lot—one armed with a shotgun. He told deputies he was forced out of his vehicle before the thieves hopped in and drove off in it.
The TCSO said their deputies were able to identify 29-year-old Roberto Diaz-Mendoza and 18-year-old Joseph Lodge as the two men who stole the vehicle. Additionally, the stolen vehicle was eventually found in Glenn County and recovered.
Deputies and police eventually located Diaz-Mendoza and Lodge, along with 20-year-old Karla Ortega-Pahua. At the time of their arrest, the TCSO said they were in possession of a vehicle recently reported stolen out of Chico. They were also found to have firearms believed to have been used in the carjacking at the casino. They were ultimately arrested for those charges.
However, while being booked into the Tehama County Jail, the TCSO said all three suspects were found with methamphetamine and/or fentanyl. All three were charged, additionally, with bringing a controlled substance into the jail.
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