Man arrested after two-hour standoff near Willits following reports of gunfire
“Did I kill you?”
Deputies with the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office were dispatched around 8:36 p.m. to the 36000 block of Highway 162 after a caller reported hearing gunshots and a man yelling, “Did I kill you?” followed by an unidentified female response, according to the sheriff’s office.
When deputies arrived, they were unable to reach the property owner by phone and received no response after announcing their presence. They then searched the approximately 15-acre property.
At the north end of the property, deputies located a fifth-wheel travel trailer and observed movement inside. A man later identified as Justin Greer, 43, exited the trailer holding a shotgun, then dropped the weapon and retreated inside after seeing deputies, authorities said. A woman, identified as Annette Pastrana, 43, was also inside.
Additional personnel, including fire and medical crews and a representative from Redwood Community Services, were staged nearby as deputies began negotiating with the occupants. Members of the Mendocino-Lake Regional SWAT team assisted during the roughly two-hour standoff.
Authorities said Greer at one point threatened to release dogs on deputies if they did not leave the property. Deputies used de-escalation techniques throughout the incident, the sheriff’s office said.
A records check showed Greer is prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition, authorities said. Deputies obtained a search warrant during the standoff.
Greer and Pastrana eventually exited the trailer and were taken into custody without further incident. A search of the property turned up three firearms and multiple rounds of live and spent ammunition inside and outside the trailer, according to the sheriff’s office.
Greer was arrested on suspicion of being a prohibited person in possession of a firearm, possession of ammunition by a prohibited person, resisting or threatening a peace officer, and obstructing or delaying an officer. Pastrana was arrested on suspicion of criminal storage of a firearm.
Greer was booked into the Mendocino County Jail and is being held on $500,000 bail after a judge approved an increase, authorities said. Pastrana was also booked into the jail but was later released on a promise to appear.
The California Highway Patrol assisted at the scene, while the Ukiah Police Department and Willits Police Department handled other calls for service during the incident.
The investigation is ongoing. Authorities ask anyone with information to contact the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office.