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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Residents in Desert Trace in Indio are voicing concerns about neighborhood safety after an attempted car burglary video is circulating on social media. Samer Sharqawi shared the video with News Channel 3. “I was trying to alert my neighbors. This is the time of the year they’re coming back again. I’m on high alert right
Continue Reading One person was hospitalized after a shooting during a house party over the weekend in Indio. The shooting was reported on Saturday at around 10:25 p.m. during a house party on the 82200 block of Garden Street, the Indio Police Department confirmed. Police said officers arrived at the scene and found a man with a
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A 2025 trial date was set for a registered sex offender accused of fatally slashing his year-old daughter before throwing her off a cliff along Highway 74 south of Palm Desert, as well as attacking the child’s mother and a good Samaritan. Adam Slater, 53, is charged with felony counts of murder, attempted murder, assault
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A man who killed an 18-year-old woman, a witness to his attempted murder of her boyfriend, was sentenced to death today. Alexis Daniel Rosas of Indio, 29, was previously convicted of first-degree murder and attempted murder, along with the two special circumstance allegations and sentence-enhancing gun and great bodily injury allegations for the 2019
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The jury has reached a verdict in the trial of two people suspected in the murder of a Coachella Valley couple, News Channel 3 has confirmed. Aaron Fernando Bernal, 32, was found not guilty of murder of Audrey Moran. He was found guilty of being an accessory after the fact in the murder of Jonathan
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A 22-year-old man who took part in the ambush slaying of a Desert Hot Springs marijuana dealer during an attempted robbery was sentenced today to life in prison without the possibility of parole. In addition to first-degree murder, Angel Arangure of Desert Hot Springs was also previously convicted of three counts of attempted robbery, according
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