Crime

A 28-year-old Coachella Valley man convicted of fatally stabbing his girlfriend during a frenzied attack possibly stemming from drug use was sentenced today to 33 years & 8 months to life in prison. Christian Alejandro Pacheco was convicted of killing Elilia Valdez Garcia, 30, of Thermal on March 17, 2017. In April, a jury found

An unlicensed driver who killed a Tour de Palm Springs bicyclist and severely injured another when he lost control of his car and crashed while high on drugs in Indio Hills was sentenced today to 20 years to life in state prison.   A Riverside jury in May convicted 26-year-old Ronnie Ramon Huerta Jr. of Desert

A 36-year-old man who stalked and harassed his ex-girlfriend while he had a no-contact order against him and rammed his car into a Riverside County Sheriff’s Department patrol vehicle is set to be sentenced next month after pleading guilty to felony charges.  Jose Lopez Jr. pleaded guilty Thursday at the Larson Justice Center in Indio

Jurors found a 30-year-old man guilty today of fatally shooting a man in the living room of a Desert Hot Springs home after finding out the victim was in the same home as his girlfriend. Daniel Ray Martinez of Desert Hot Springs was charged with one felony count each of murder and being a felon

A 33-year-old homeless man pleaded guilty today to starting a small brush fire in Palm Springs earlier this year and was immediately sentenced to two years in state prison. Anthony Cordero pleaded guilty at the Larson Justice Center in Indio to one felony count of arson to a non-dwelling, according to court records.    Officers

A woman pleaded guilty today to burglarizing a Palm Desert business and was immediately sentenced to one year and four months in county jail. Ali Danielle Castillo, 27, of Orange County, pleaded guilty Tuesday at the Larson Justice Center in Indio to one felony count of burglary, according to court records. Co-defendant Michael James Graham,

A 27-year-old man suspected in a string of burglaries in the south end of Palm Springs was arrested early today.    The suspect was arrested around midnight Tuesday near South Civic Drive on suspicion of possessing controlled substances, a firearm, and burglary tools, and a stolen vehicle, according to inmate records. Officers responded to the

A former member of the United States military who lived in Corona was sentenced today to 27 months in prison for conspiring to unlawfully export to Russia thermal imaging riflescopes, night vision goggles and other defense items without a license in violation of federal law.    Igor Panchernikov, 41, who once served in the U.S.

A 59-year-old self-employed pool serviceman accused of killing of a 93-year-old woman in Palm Desert must stand trial on murder, a judge ruled today. Benjamin Briones of Thousand Palms was charged with one felony count each of murder, burglary and forging a signature, according to court records. He additionally faces a special-circumstance allegation of committing

A 36-year-old man pleaded guilty today to carrying out multiple residential burglaries in Palm Desert last year and was immediately sentenced to five years in state prison. Adan Abel Holguin pleaded guilty Thursday at the Larson Justice Center in Indio to two felony counts of burglary and one felony count each of receiving stolen property,

A 19-year-old man suspected of being one of three men involved in a car-to-car shooting in the parking lot of The Shops in Palm Desert earlier this year pleaded not guilty to felony charges today. Daniel Joseph Santacroce of Desert Hot Springs was charged with four felony counts of attempted murder and one felony count