SPPD: Woman found dead from drug overdose at Mill Park identified
By Peggy Kelly
Santa Paula Police Department
Published: January 11, 2012
The identify of the woman found dead last week from a drug overdose in a park restroom has been identified, and Santa Paula Police are asking the public to contact them with any information regarding the January 4 incident.
According to SPPD Detective Sergeant Ishmael Cordero, the woman was identified as Andrea Petra Perez, 48, a transient from the City of Santa Barbara. “She was identified through information obtained from a cell phone on her person,” said Cordero, and Perez’s identity was confirmed “with family by the tattoos on her person.”
Perez was found by emergency responders last week after an anonymous caller phoned in a report that a woman was unconscious in the restroom at Mill Park, located in the 700 block of Santa Paula/Ojai Road-Highway 150. It was shortly after 3 p.m. that a woman called 911 from a payphone at a market located at 12th and High streets and reported a woman “passed out” in the park restroom.
It was determined Perez could have been in the bathroom for about 30 minutes before the report came in. Although a lengthy attempt was made to revive Perez, she was declared dead at the scene. It was observed Perez had “recent marks” indicating drug injections.
Witnesses told police Perez had been at the park with two companions, an “older” male and another female in a blue compact car for about an hour before it was reported she was unconscious in the restroom. “We would like to get more information from those people,” including the woman who called, who police suspect might have been the female seen earlier with the dead woman.
It is common for people who have overdosed to be dropped off at emergency rooms. If not, their companions usually attempt to revive them.
Cordero said the circumstances of Perez’s death remain unknown: “It’s hard to say” if her companions tried to help or if they were the ones that called for help; Perez could have been discovered by someone who just entered the restroom. Anyone with information is asked to call Detective Ken Clark at the SPPD, 805-525-4474.
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