Driver Accused of Soliciting Murder

A man accused of putting out a $500 murder contract on someone he thought had stolen his car has been arrested in Port Hueneme, police said Friday.

Robert Hicks, 37, of Lompoc was being held at Ventura County Jail in lieu of $5,000 bail, authorities said.

The incident began Monday, police said, when Hicks met Matthew Makela, 34, an unemployed drywaller, at a party in Santa Maria. Makela then drove Hicks’ car to Port Hueneme.

On Tuesday, Hicks told Santa Maria police his car had been stolen, and Port Hueneme officers arrested Makela in Hicks’ vehicle on Thursday.

Makela posted bail and was released from jail about 6 p.m., but within an hour he called police and told them he had heard on the street that Hicks had purchased a $500 contract on his life and was in the area, said Port Hueneme Police Sgt. Jerry Beck. Shortly after Makela’s call, his ex-girlfriend telephoned with the same information, Beck said.

Officers stopped a car that matched the description of an auto reportedly driven by Hicks, and found Hicks and Cedric Adams, a 25-year-old transient, inside, with a loaded .25-caliber automatic handgun under the front seat, Beck said.

“Hicks denied any knowledge of the gun or any threats at all,” Beck said.

Hicks and Adams were arrested on suspicion of soliciting murder, carrying a concealed weapon and carrying a loaded firearm in public, authorities said. Both are scheduled to be arraigned Monday.