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
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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
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BEAUMONT, Calif. (KESQ) – Costa Mesa police reached out to the public today to identify possible additional victims of a man arrested in Beaumont who is suspected of committing lewd acts with a pair of teenage girls. Peter Michael Mejia, 27, of Redlands, was arrested Monday, according to the Costa Mesa Police Department. He has
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RAMONA, Calif. (KESQ) – Detectives investigating the fatal stabbing of a Cal Fire captain in her Ramona home “are treating this case as a potential domestic-violence incident,” a Sheriff’s lieutenant said today. Deputies responding to a report of an assault about 9 p.m. Monday found Rebecca “Becky” Marodi, 49, mortally wounded at her residence in
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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
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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
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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
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A minor was hospitalized after being stabbed with a screwdriver in Mecca Wednesday afternoon. The stabbing was first reported at around 1:30 p.m. in the area of 2nd Street and Date Street. “When deputies arrived, they learned a juvenile was assaulted by two other juveniles with a screwdriver,” writes Sergeant Wenndy Brito-Gonzalez, public information officer
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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
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RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KESQ) – A former counselor at a Christian academy in Riverside was sentenced today to 30 years in prison on federal charges for having possessed child pornography and producing it by secretly recording students using the boys’ restroom across from his office at the private school. During a March 2020 search of his
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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.
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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
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One driver was arrested, two drivers were cited during Cathedral City police’s DUI/Driver License checkpoint on Friday. Police said a total of 1403 vehicles traveled through the checkpoint, which was located at eastbound East Palm Drive and West Buddy Rogers, between the hours of 6:00 p.m. and 2:00 a.m. CCPD released data on the checkpoint
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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
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Indio police will soon have more “Flock Safety Automatic License Plate Recognition” (ALPR) cameras throughout the city after the Indio City Council approved the expansion of the program. After a unanimous vote in its Wednesday meeting, the council approved adding an additional 27 ALPR cameras, for a total of 72. News Channel 3’s Shay Lawson
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A 48-year-old man accused of killing a woman at an Aguanga RV park and setting multiple fires in an attempt to cover up the crime was charged today with first-degree murder and other offenses. Preston Garrett Young of Aguanga was arrested Tuesday following a Riverside County Sheriff’s Department investigation. Along with murder, Young is
Continue Reading Prosecution testimony began Wednesday in the trial of a Desert Hot Springs man accused of shooting more than three dozen bullets at four young men standing outside a Palm Desert mall, causing damage but no injuries. Daniel Joseph Santacroce was arrested in 2023 following a Riverside County Sheriff’s Department investigation into the attack at
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NOTE in this same story on Wednesday, there was no mention of an objection from the District Attorney’s Office because confirmation of last week’s proceedings by the agency DID NOT include any reference to an objection on the record. The D.A.’s office, however, NOW SAYS the prosecution did in fact make one. The story below
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MECCA, Calif (KESQ) – Sheriff’s deputies have one person in custody and are searching for a second subject following a train burglary in Mecca Wednesday morning. At around 10:35 a.m., deputies were notified of suspicious activity near the train tracks in the area of Hammond Road and Johnson Street. “Upon arrival, deputies learned that a
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INDIO, Calif (KESQ) – A 19-year-old man has been charged with murder following a deadly shooting outside of the Food 4 Less store in Indio over the weekend. Gideon Gonzalez Jr. of Indio is accused of killing a 26-year-old man Saturday evening. On Wednesday, he was officially charged with murder, two counts of assault with
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