A 23-year-old Ukiah man told the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office he was robbed at gunpoint near Oak Knoll Road and South State Street on Wednesday, November 4, 2026, setting off a search that would stretch from a Hopland gas station brawl to an arrest at San Francisco International Airport. The man said the robber shot at him before taking his phone, wallet and keys. By the time it was over, deputies had recovered nearly 177 pounds of packaged marijuana from an abandoned van and booked a 36-year-old Georgia man on robbery and cannabis charges.
The first call came in around 3:11 p.m. Wednesday, and the victim told deputies he used a relative's phone to track his stolen device, according to Mendocino Voice. The signal led him to a gas station in Hopland, where he found the man he says robbed him and the two got into a physical fight. A California Department of Fish and Wildlife warden happened to see the altercation outside the store and reported that several people were fighting, with one man in a gray tracksuit running north, per the same account.
Shelter-in-Place Alert and a Scramble for a Suspect
As deputies converged on Hopland, the Sheriff's Office sent out a shelter-in-place alert. Mendocino Voice reported the alert went out at about 4:37 p.m., while Redheaded Blackbelt cited sheriff's documentation placing it at approximately the same time, 4:37 p.m. Investigators searched the abandoned van the suspect left behind at the gas station and recovered the victim's phone and keys along with roughly 177 pounds of processed, packaged marijuana, the station notes. They also found a wallet and identification inside that named the suspect as Darrell Law Jr.
According to the SFGATE report, Law had fled the gas station in a white rental van bearing Idaho plates before ditching it and running on foot. Authorities deployed a drone and a helicopter and set up a perimeter near Highway 175 and Old Hopland, SFGATE reported, but failed to locate him despite hours of searching. The Mendocino County Sheriff's Office also used its automated license plate reader system as part of the investigation, per the same account.
Cellphone Pings Trace a Path Toward San Francisco
With Law's own cellphone line disconnected, detectives requested emergency location data using a phone number obtained during the investigation, SFGATE reported. The first signal placed him in downtown Santa Rosa, about 60 miles south of Ukiah, before later pings showed him continuing south through Sonoma and Marin counties. Investigators believed he was traveling by public transit or an airport shuttle and determined his likely destination was San Francisco International Airport based on the cellphone pings, according to Redheaded Blackbelt.
Authorities contacted transportation operators and alerted law enforcement agencies along Law's suspected route, SFGATE reported. Airport police detained Law upon his arrival at SFO on Wednesday, and Mendocino County investigators then obtained a signed arrest warrant. He was booked into the San Mateo County jail on suspicion of first-degree robbery, possession of cannabis for sale and transportation of cannabis for sale, with bail set at $300,000, Mendocino Voice reported. SFGATE reported he was expected to be transferred to Mendocino County custody Thursday.
No Weapon Recovered, Investigation Ongoing
No firearm has been recovered in the case, and authorities have not identified any additional suspects, according to SFGATE's reporting. Investigators are still working to determine the marijuana's origins and whether Law has any connections to Mendocino County, the outlet noted.
The case echoes a string of similar incidents reported around Hopland and Mendocino County over the years. In 2019, three men allegedly robbed a Laytonville-area resident of roughly 100 pounds of cannabis and forced him to help them find the highway, Mendocino Voice reported at the time. In November 2020, four masked, armed suspects confronted a guard at a cannabis property on Pratt Ranch Road in Hopland, according to Redheaded Blackbelt. And in April 2024, two masked suspects allegedly robbed and assaulted several people at gunpoint in Hopland, per Crime Voice.
The Mendocino County Sheriff's Office is asking anyone with information about the robbery to call 707-463-4086, or to leave an anonymous tip at 707-234-2100, according to SFGATE.
