3 suspected gang members held after Santa Rosa stop

Police arrested three alleged gang members for suspected links to an assault and concealing weapons after their vehicle was stopped for speeding in Santa Rosa early Saturday, authorities said.

At about 3:35 a.m., a Santa Rosa police officer noticed that a car driving too fast through a construction zone at Sebastopol Road and Stony Point Road matched the description of a vehicle involved in a gang-related assault a week earlier, according to the Santa Rosa Police Department.

The officer, who was joined by others from the department, found a loaded .25 caliber semiautomatic handgun, crowbar and wooden baseball bat in the vehicle.

A 16-year-old Santa Rosa male, who was not identified because of his age, was arrested on suspicion of assault with a stun gun linked to the earlier incident, as well as for other suspected crimes including possessing a concealed firearm and violating terms of his juvenile probation.

Kevin Escalera, 20, of Santa Rosa was also arrested on suspicion of several crimes, including possessing a concealed firearm and violating terms of his probation. Miguel Angel Castillo, 20, was arrested on suspicion of similar crimes.

All three are known gang members, police say.

Four females between the ages of 17 and 20 were riding with the men.