MENDOCINO CO. 7/7/2025 – After an extensive two-day search, Mendocino County Sheriff’s deputies arrested a man suspected of attacking someone with a machete in Boonville last week, the office said Monday.
On July 1 at about 7:46 p.m., deputies were sent to the 21000 block of Redwood Ridge Road in Boonville on a report of an assault with a deadly weapon. Deputies found a 74-year-old man who said he had been attacked with a machete by an acquaintance.
According to investigators, the suspect entered the man’s residence without warning and brandished a machete-style implement above his head as he approached the victim. The man tried to defend himself and was able to physically resist the attack but sustained an injury to his hand.
The suspect fled the scene before deputies arrived. A machete and other evidence were allegedly found at the residence.
The victim identified the suspect as Ryan Stearns, a 43-year-old transient.
Deputies searched for Stearns in numerous areas of Boonville that night but were unable to locate him. An arrest order went out to law enforcement across the county.
On Wednesday at noon, deputies picked up their search for Stearns again, the Sheriff’s Office said. Several residents had reported seeing him in the Boonville and Navarro areas, including one report that said he was seen on a motorized bike, possibly going west on state Highway 128.
Just before 2:30 p.m. that same day, deputies were sent to a store in Comptche after an employee reported an intoxicated man causing a disturbance. The suspect fled the store as soon as he heard police were being called and ran into a wooded area, the Sheriff’s Office said.
Deputies believed the suspect was Stearns, based on information given to them by the community. An extensive ground search was initiated in the thick wooded area and Stearns was taken into custody.
Stearns was booked into the Mendocino County Jail on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, burglary, and elder abuse resulting in injury, all felonies. As of Monday, Stearns was still in custody being held on $50,000 bail.