Charges filed in Taco Bell citizen's arrest

The owner of a Roseville martial arts center has been charged with misdemeanor battery and false impersonation of a police officer stemming from his December 2009 citizen's arrest of an employee he suspected to be stealing money.Dave G. Marinoble, 41, is set to be arraigned April 6. Another instructor, Justin T. Ewen, 28, faces the same charges and will also be arraigned April 6.According to a criminal complaint filed by the Placer County District Attorney's Office, the two men falsely represented themselves as law enforcement officers when they arrested and detained 18-year-old Riley Lockett, who Marinoble said he caught on surveillance video stealing money from his office.The complaint also alleges that Marinoble and Ewen committed battery by unlawfully using force and violence on Lockett.Witnesses told Roseville police officers that Marinoble approached Lockett from behind while he was dining at the Foothills Boulevard Taco Bell on Dec. 17, and placed him in a chokehold before taking him down and restraining him with handcuffs. Four witnesses also said Marinoble identified himself as a police officer when patrons demanded that someone call 911, according to Roseville police spokeswoman Dee Dee Gunther. Another purported witness who e-mailed the Press Tribune said that Lockett's face had turned purple in the chokehold and that Marinoble also threatened to kill the teen. Marinoble was contacted at his Cirby Way business Friday but did not wish to comment on the charges. He has maintained that he used reasonable means to detain Lockett, who he said is a second-degree blackbelt and a "trained killer.""It wasn't like he was just some average guy who I could handcuff and tell him he was under arrest," Marinoble said days after the incident.Prosecutor Tracy Lunardi evaluated the case and made the determination. She said her decision was made based on law enforcement reports and witness statements.Eric Laughlin can be reached at ericl@goldcountrymedia.com.