Crime

INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – Prosecution testimony got underway Wednesday in the trial of a felon accused of killing his year-old daughter and stabbing his pregnant wife after turning irate during a child custody exchange in Indian Wells. Adam Slater, 53, of Palm Desert allegedly killed baby Madalyn in 2020 during an act of rage that

RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KESQ) – A June 11 trial date was confirmed today for a 23-year-old woman accused of joining two young men in robbing and killing a Riverside man in his apartment. Merlin Perales Ortiz of Yucca Valley was arrested in December 2020 following a Riverside Police Department investigation into the slaying of 20-year-old Wesley

INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) — $213,000 worth of drugs were found hidden in a semi-truck at the Highway 86 checkpoint near the Salton Sea. The discovery was made last Wednesday. At approximately 10:46 a.m., a yellow semi-truck approached the U.S. Border Patrol State Route 86 immigration checkpoint and was referred for secondary inspection. During the secondary

SAN JACINTO, Calif. (KESQ) – A man confronted by California Highway Patrol officers for allegedly throwing rocks at passing vehicles just north of San Jacinto was fatally shot when he threw rocks at them, authorities said today. The shooting occurred shortly before 5 p.m. Monday on Gilman Springs Road, just east of Highway 79, according

A suspect is in custody after a high-speed pursuit ended in a brief standoff Monday afternoon. The incident started at Noon when deputies saw a vehicle reported stolen in the area of 66th Avenue and Tyler Street in Thermal, according to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office. Deputies followed the vehicle and a pursuit was later

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) – A hidden surveillance camera was found in a Palm Springs neighborhood sparking a call from police for residents to be vigilant and inspect their properties. Police said the camera was disguised as plants and grass in a local yard in the Las Palmas neighborhood. It’s the only known incident of

CATHEDRAL CITY, Calif. (KESQ) – A 52-year-old man died in the hospital from injuries sustained in a hit-and-run crash nearly two weeks ago in Cathedral City. Ruben Mijarez of Cathedral City was pronounced dead Monday at Loma Linda University Medical Center. Police said Mijarez was struck by a vehicle on Friday, January 31, at around

RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KESQ) – The second of two former Riverside County Superior Court clerks who mishandled privileged information connected to a criminal case was sentenced today to one day in county jail, but after receiving credit for time served, she walked free. Michelle Valdez, 59, of Thousand Palms pleaded guilty in October to felony conspiracy.

Jurors deliberated less than a day before acquitting a Desert Hot Springs man of shooting at four young men standing outside a Palm Desert mall, but they did convict him of a weapons charge. A Murrieta jury on Tuesday afternoon returned unanimous not guilty verdicts on four counts of attempted murder in the trial of

A 24-year-old man accused of killing a man and woman in Coachella must stand trial on two counts of first-degree murder and other charges, a judge ruled today. Monique Vega Daniel Torres Cerda of Coachella allegedly gunned down 23-year-old Hector Ramos, also of Coachella, and 26-year-old Monique Vega of Valle Verda in 2022. Following a