A 46-year-old Indio man was sentenced to three years in prison today after pleading guilty to a burglary charge in connection with a break-in at a Palm Springs business. Duane Blunt entered a guilty plea on Friday to a felony count of burglary at the Larson Justice Center in Indio, according to case records. A
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A Thousand Palms man accused of stealing a purse in La Quinta and other similar thefts remains behind bars today after pleading guilty to a felony robbery charge. Eddie Ramirez, 40, was arrested in September 2022 on suspicion of robbery and multiple outstanding warrants, according to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department. The defendant entered the
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A state grant is providing new security measures for local businesses targeted by retail theft. The State Budget Act of 2022 provided funding to California police and sheriff departments, probation departments to support law enforcement in preventing organized retail and motor vehicle theft. Now, Palm Spring businesses can cash in on the assistance by applying
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Update 11/21/24 The coroner’s office identified the man found dead as Zachary Sandoval Roberts, 31, of Coachella Original Report 11/19/24 The Riverside County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a homicide after the body of a man was found in a Coachella ranch Tuesday afternoon. The body was first reported to deputies at around 12:30 p.m. on
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A man who carried out a string of commercial burglaries in Rancho Mirage was sentenced to two years in prison after entering guilty pleas to multiple charges, authorities said today. Thousand Palms resident Kenneth Cook, 48, pleaded guilty to six felony counts of burglary Wednesday at the Larson Justice Center in Indio, according to case
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A 31-year-old Desert Hot Springs man was arrested on suspicion of sexually assaulting a minor in the High Desert, investigators announced on Thursday. According to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department, on October 20, deputies began their investigation into unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor that occurred in Yucca Valley. Through the investigation, deputies determined
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More than four decades after it happened, the identity of the man who sexually assaulted and killed a 17-year-old Beaumont girl was confirmed through DNA evidence, authorities alleged today. Lewis Randolph “Randy” Williamson, now deceased, is believed to be the person responsible for the rape and murder of Esther Gonzalez in the winter of 1979,
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A 36-year-old Thermal man who repeatedly sexually molested a young girl over a period of years was convicted today of nearly a dozen felony charges. A Riverside jury deliberated just over a day before finding Alfonso Gonzalez Meraz guilty of four counts each of forcible lewd acts on a child and sexual assault of
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A Thermal man convicted of multiple charges after molesting a young girl several times and then trying to intimidate her and her mother into changing their stories to spare him from prosecution was sentenced to 10 years in prison today. Elit Barroso Miranda, 41, was previously found guilty of two counts of lewd acts on
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A person was found with gunshot wounds Tuesday morning in Indio, police confirmed. The person was spotted at around 10:45 a.m. on the 44400 block of Palm Street near Valencia Avenue, according to Ben Guitron, spokesperson for the Indio Police Department. The victim was rushed to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Guitron said they remain
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Opening statements were completed and testimony got underway today for a woman, her parolee father and a third defendant accused of murdering a 29-year-old man in a Cathedral City park four years ago. Rena Lizette Alaniz, 25, of Thousand Palms, Carlos Antonio Ruiz, 45, of La Quinta, and Andres Moreno, 23, of Cathedral City are
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Longtime Desert Hot Springs Councilmember Russell Betts has been charged by the Riverside County District Attorney’s office. Betts has been charged with felony vandalism and misdemeanor false imprisonment, according to the criminal complaint, filed on Nov. 4. RIF2405660, Betts, Complaint_RedactedDownload According to an arrest declaration, the incident happened on the morning of Aug. 4 at
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A Riverside County Sheriff’s deputy was arrested on suspicion of distributing child pornography. Richard Anthony Rodriguez, 42, was arrested on November 6 in Menifee during a joint operation between the Montclair Police Department and the Riverside County District Attorney’s office, a detective sergeant with MPD confirmed. According to the sergeant, in September, police were notified
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Police arrested a minor suspected of being involved in a shooting at an Indio party over the weekend that left one person injured. The shooting happened on Saturday at around 10:25 p.m. during a house party on the 82200 block of Garden Street, the Indio Police Department confirmed. One person suffered non-life-threatening injuries. Indio police
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Two convicted felons who attempted to kill a Hemet man in a gang-related attack tied to an unpaid debt stemming from methamphetamine distribution were sentenced today. Carl Ray Flores, 48, and Brian Ramiro Inocencio, 28, both of Moreno Valley, were each convicted last month of attempted murder, witness intimidation, conspiracy and firearm assault, along with
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Riverside County Sheriff’s deputies are investigating a shooting Thursday afternoon in the community of Mecca. The shooting was first reported at around 3:45 p.m. in the area of Home Avenue and 5th Street. Deputies located evidence of a shooting, however, no injuries have been reported. The investigation remains ongoing. Stay with News Channel 3 for
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The Riverside County Registrar of Voters received a second bomb threat in the past week. The threat was received on Tuesday at approximately 5:42 p.m. “The County of Riverside Registrar of Voters was notified by the Assessor-County Clerk’s office, with whom we share the building, a suspicious package had been received in their outside Dropbox. The
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A minor was rushed to the hospital after being shot near Bagdouma Park in Coachella. The shooting was reported just before 7:00 p.m. in the area of 51st Avenue and Mecca Street. “Upon arrival, deputies located a subject suffering from injuries consistent with a gunshot wound,” reads an email from the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office.
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Deputies were able to locate a suspect in an armed robbery in Palm Desert on Wednesday. The robbery was reported at around 1:00 p.m. in the area of Country Club Drive and Cook Street. According to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office, the victims said they were walking in the area when a suspect approached them,
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Several days after filing murder charges against a 30-year-old man suspected of killing a Brea couple, prosecutors today released additional details, saying the victims’ bodies were both burned, along with their two Tesla cars. Huanting Gong of Glendale was charged Thursday with two counts of murder with special circumstance allegations of multiple murders and
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