INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – A 23-year-old man pleaded not guilty to a murder charge in connection with a deadly shooting last week at the Motel 6 in Indio. Cameron Isaiah Maestas was arrested Friday, hours after the deadly shooting at the Motel 6 on Indio Boulevard, near Sun Gold Street and Fred Waring Drive. The
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BANNING, Calif. (KESQ) – Developer John Wessman was found not guilty of bribing former Palm Springs Mayor Steve Pougnet. A jury found Wessman not guilty on all charges, which included nine counts of bribery and one count of conspiracy. Wessman was accused of paying former Palm Springs Mayor Steve Pougnet more than $200,000 to secure city
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INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – Indio police officers issued six citations and arrested one person for allegedly evading officers during a DUI checkpoint, authorities announced today. The checkpoint was conducted from 6 p.m. Friday until 1 a.m. Saturday at Jackson Street and Dillon Avenue, police said. Â Â Citations were issued for violations including driving with a
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BANNING, Calif. (KESQ) – Jury selection is slated to get underway tomorrow for the trial of a 43-year-old Banning man accused of raping two women on separate occasions while they were intoxicated, as well as molesting his 12-year-old girl.  Steven Roy McElroy was arrested in 2022 following an extensive Banning Police Department investigation that relied
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Update 6/16/25 The suspect was released on $200,000 bail Sunday, according to jail records. Edward Miranda is scheduled to appear in court on July 18. Original Report 6/14/25 PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) – A La Quinta man was arrested after allegedly making an online post threatening a shooting at the “No Kings Day” protest in
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LA QUINTA, Calif. (KESQ) – Homicide investigators with the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department have made an arrest in the 2019 shooting death of a man in La Quinta, authorities said. The suspect, a 23-year-old man from Whitewater, was taken into custody Friday after investigators developed new leads and reopened a cold case, according to sheriff’s
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INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – A pool serviceman who fatally beat a 93-year-old Palm Desert woman while trying to steal from her was sentenced today to 19 years to life in state prison. An Indio jury in April convicted Benjamin Cabrera Briones, 62, of Thousand Palms of second-degree murder, as well as burglary and forgery, for
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INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – A convicted felon who choked his girlfriend to death during a domestic conflict in the parking lot of an Indio condominium complex was sentenced today to 15 years to life in state prison. An Indio jury in April convicted 44-year-old Eduardo Alvarez of the 2020 slaying of 32-year-old Madeleine Gutierrez of
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Editor’s Note: The original version of this article had the sentence as 25 years to life. This was incorrect. Jose Ernesto Martinez was sentenced to 50 years to life INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – A Desert Hot Springs man convicted of killing his girlfriend’s lover was sentenced to 50 years to life in prison. Jose Ernesto
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PALM DESERT, Calif. (KESQ) – A heavy police presence was in Palm Desert near Monterey Avenue and Sagewood Drive Thursday as Sheriff’s deputies on the ground and in the air searched for a hit-and-run suspect. According to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office, deputies were called out to a hit-and-run crash at around 5:25 p.m. in
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PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) – Spectrum is offering a reward of up to $25,000 for information on a vandalism incident in the Palm Springs area this week. According to the company, individuals intentionally cut its fiber lines on Wednesday in the southeast area of Palm Springs, causing a service outage for some customers and businesses
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INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – A 24-year-old Desert Hot Springs man caught with hundreds of pornographic pictures and videos depicting children was sentenced today to 16 months in state prison. Victor Christopher Lascano pleaded guilty in March to two counts of possession of child porn, as well as a sentence-enhancing allegation of possession of explicit material
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MURRIETA, Calif. (KESQ) – A jury deliberated one day before convicting a young man of first-degree murder for fatally shooting a 17-year-old Cathedral City boy during a street confrontation that possibly stemmed from ill-will that had developed when the two worked together. A Murrieta jury on Tuesday afternoon found Juan Alfredo Landeros Garcia, 26, of
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Editor’s Note: The wrong address for the Arabian Gardens Mobile Home Park was listed in the original version of the article. The correct address is on Clinton Street and Fred Waring Drive. INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – Police recovered several illegal firearms during a search warrant service at a mobile home park in Indio Wednesday morning.
Continue Reading MURRIETA, Calif. (KESQ) – Jury deliberations got underway today in the trial of a young man accused of fatally shooting a 17-year-old Cathedral City boy during a street confrontation that possibly stemmed from ill will that developed when the two worked together. Juan Alfredo Landeros Garcia, 26, of Cathedral City is charged with first-degree murder,
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BANNING, Calif. (KESQ) – An 82-year-old man convicted of killing a 75-year-old woman in Palm Springs six years ago was sentenced to 15 years to life on Monday. Last month, Stephen Roy McKernan was found guilty of second-degree murder in the killing of Claire Carsman at her Palm Springs home in 2019. The jury also
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BANNING, Calif. (KESQ) – The jury has begun deliberations in the high-profile bribery trial of Palm Springs developer John Wessman. Closing arguments wrapped up Friday morning. Wessman faces nine counts of bribery and one count of conspiracy. He is accused of paying former Palm Springs Mayor Steve Pougnet more than $200,000 to secure city support
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PALM DESERT, Calif. (KESQ) – Investigators identified more potential victims in a case of an ex-indie rock drummer accused of possessing child pornography and recording a minor in a public restroom. New charges were filed this week against Joseph Seiders, 44, of Palm Desert, after investigators identified two additional victims not associated with the initial
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INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – Defense testimony is slated to last all next week in the trial of an ex-Riverside County sheriff’s deputy accused of gunning down a man with whom he was at odds because the victim had been involved with the lawman’s then-girlfriend. Oscar Rodriguez, 44, is charged with first-degree murder and sentence-enhancing gun
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BANNING, Calif. (KESQ) – An 86-year-old real estate developer accused of giving then-Palm Springs Mayor Steve Pougnet with six-figure bribes to win his support for projects violated the “public trust,” putting a politician in his pocket to satisfy his greed, a prosecutor said today, while the defense countered that the real corruption lies with a
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