Prominent SLO County developer arrested on assault charges

November 28, 2015

By KAREN VELIE

Arroyo Grande police arrested a prominent local developer on Thanksgiving day in connection with an assault that allegedly caused serious bodily injury to a girlfriend, they said.

Ryan Petetit, 28, is a principal in PB Companies, a real estate investment and development firm currently under fire for not paying subcontractors and for operating without the proper permits. In the past few years, Petetit and his partner John Belsher, 61, have been in court over multiple financial controversies including breach of contract and not paying fines for building violations.

On Nov. 22, a physician at a hospital called police to report a patient with injuries consistent with domestic violence. Officers spoke with the patient who identified Petetit as her assailant, but were unable to arrest Petetit until Thanksgiving, police said.

On Nov. 26, officers arrested Petetit on charges of felony false imprisonment, felony battery with serious bodily injury, felony domestic violence and a misdemeanor charge of disabling a wireless device. A bails bondsmen was waiting at the jail to post Petetit’s bond when the officers brought him in, police said.

Petetit quickly posted $50,000 bail and was released from custody. Officers then contacted a judge who signed an emergency protective order to help safeguard the woman from further abuse.

Since PB Companies was founded in 2012, prosecutors have charged Petetit with five misdemeanors. One of the misdemeanors also dealt with abuse of a domestic partner.

In 2013, Petetit was arrested on a corporal injury on a spouse charge. A court granted his alleged victim a protective order that expires in 2016, according to court records.

PB Companies is involved in more than a dozen development projects, several of which San Luis Obispo County Supervisor Adam Hill has actively promoted. Hill, who is tied to PB Companies through San Luis Consulting, has lobbied the city of San Luis Obispo to approve land use changes PB Companies has requested.

PB Companies is currently moving forward on several large commercial, mixed-use and residential projects including two subdivisions in Templeton, a mixed-use project at the corner of Marsh and Nipomo streets in San Luis Obispo and an assisted-living facility in Arroyo Grande.

Belsher and Petetit have secured money from banks, hard-money lenders and private investors to purchase properties and pay for construction, according to county records. In some cases, investors have been promised rates of return between 20 to 50 percent, according to an email from Petetit to a potential investor.

Get links to local news, like CCN on Facebook.