UPD: Acid poured on neighbors

Ukiah man arrested

A Ukiah man was arrested after allegedly pouring acid on two of his neighbors during an argument, the Ukiah Police Department reported.

According to the UPD, officers responded to the 200 block of Cherry Street around 10:15 p.m. Oct. 5 when it was reported that neighbors there were having a dispute. While en-route, the officers learned that one of the parties “may have been doused with a chemical agent.”

When officers arrived, they reportedly learned that James A. Lee, 53, of Ukiah, had “became angry and doused his two neighbors with a gallon bottle of Muriatic Acid, (pouring it) in the face and neck area of both victims.”

Personnel from the the Ukiah Valley Fire Authority and local ambulances were summoned to the scene and began treating the victims, and the UVFA “be

gan hazmat procedures to contain the acid which had been spilled on the sidewalk and concrete.”

The UPD reports that “one of the victim’s injuries were so severe that she was transported to Adventist Health Ukiah Valley by ambulance, then transported by air ambulance to an out- of- county hospital for more specialized medical treatment.”

Officers arrested Lee on suspicion of assault causing great bodily injury and of using a caustic chemical on another.

Due to the severity of his alleged crimes, the UPD contacted a Superior Court judge for a bail enhancement and was granted a $125,000 bail for Lee, who was booked into Mendocino County Jail.