A Palm Desert man previously sentenced in federal court to five years behind bars for firebombing the La Quinta office of a Republican organization was sentenced today in state court to 13 years for the same crime. Carlos Espriu, 24, pleaded guilty in October in Riverside County Superior Court to one count of arson of
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Just before 10 P.M., a suspect was arrested after a standoff that lasted hours between police. Hours earlier, around 7 P.M., the Palm Springs Police Department advised residents in the 1800 block of N Cerritos Road to stay indoors due to police activity. Lieutenant William Hutchinson told News Channel 3 that officers had been working
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A man accused of committing a non-fatal stabbing while he was out on bail in Coachella pleaded not guilty today to related charges. Hernan Bustamante Meza, 30, of Coachella was arrested Wednesday after a follow-up investigation by the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department into a reported stabbing, authorities said. The Riverside County District Attorney’s Office charged
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Riverside County sheriff’s detectives today were working to develop leads in an investigation into the suspicious death of a 46-year-old woman in Mountain Center, hoping someone might have information on the case. The body of Jodi Newkirk of Mountain Center was discovered about 5:30 p.m. Thursday in a large open field near Bonita Vista and
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Two men accused of taking part in a gang-related shooting in Indio in 2018 had their attempted murder charges dropped today as a part of a plea deal. Charles Salter, 26, and Joseph Riley, 23, pleaded guilty at the Larson Justice Center on Wednesday to one felony count each of assault with a semi-automatic firearm
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Border Patrol agents found more than $82,000 hidden in a spare tire after a traffic stop on Interstate 10 in the Coachella Valley. The incident started at approximately midnight on Monday. According to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, agents conducted a traffic stop on a silver 2013 Volkswagen Passat on the I-10, east of
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A suspected DUI driver is in custody after leading deputies on a high-speed pursuit through Palm Desert and La Quinta Tuesday afternoon. According to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department, the pursuit started at around 1:23 p.m. in the area of Sage Lane and Highway 111. Deputies attempted a traffic stop on a vehicle for a
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A Riverside man was arrested on accusations that he sold counterfeit oxycodone pills containing fentanyl that lead to the deadly overdose of a college student who was visiting her family for the holidays two years ago, the Department of Justice announced. Brandon Michael McDowell, 22, was arrested and is scheduled to be arraigned Friday afternoon
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A family in Perris has been accused of physically and psychologically abusing several foster children, including some of the Turpin siblings, CBS and ABC News report. Marcelino, Lennys, and Rosa Olguin were arrested on Nov. 3 and charged with a combined 17 counts of child cruelty. Marcelino was charged with four counts of lewd acts
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Felony charges were filed today against a 30-year-old Desert Hot Springs man accused of possessing child pornography. Robert Earl Adams was arrested Tuesday following an investigation conducted by the Desert Hot Springs Police Department regarding the possession and possible dissemination of videos depicting sexual exploitation of children, according to Doria Wilms, a public information
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The driver of a vehicle involved in a deadly crash Monday night in Coachella has been arrested on accusations of driving under the influence. The crash was between a white GMC Sierra and a red Chevrolet Camaro. It happened at approximately 8:20 p.m. at the intersection of Cesar Chavez Street and Cairo Avenue. No one
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Update 12/14/21: Police confirmed that this is officially considered a homicide. There were no additional details on the circumstances surrounding the death. Police did confirm that the victim, an adult male, was a resident of the home where he was found. The victim’s name can not be released at this time as Indio Police Detectives
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Update 3:10 p.m. The man shot has died from his injuries, police confirmed. If anyone has any further information regarding this case, please contact the Indio Police Department’s Major Crimes Unit at (760) 391-4051 or call anonymous information through Valley Crime Stoppers at (760) 341- STOP(7867). This marks back-to-back days with a homicide in the
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Jose Manuel Martinez Garcia The Riverside County District Attorney’s office announced the arrest of 36-year-old Jose Manuel Martinez Garcia on Friday. The Coachella resident is accused of physically and/or sexually assaulting 6 women throughout the Coachella Valley from September 2020 to August 2021. Garcia plead not guilty on Friday. Police say Garcia was arrested on
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An Indio jury on Thursday convicted Gabriel Anthony Ortiz, 27, of sexually assaulting the then 20-year-old woman, identified only as Jane Doe, who investigators say “functions at the competency of a 12-year-old girl,” according to court documents. She suffers from cerebral palsy and other medical conditions according to an arrest warrant declaration, which states
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The Riverside County Coroner’s office has released the identity of the man killed in a stabbing at Miles Ave Park in Indio earlier this week. Montel Robison, 30, of Indio was pronounced dead at the scene. Police say the incident was first reported at approximately 5:40 p.m. on Monday. Officers said they arrived at the
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Update 12/08/21 Police confirmed that this was a deadly shooting. The incident happened at around 8:00 p.m., that’s when officers were first called to the 66800 block of Ironwood Drive to respond to reports of gunshots heard in the area. When officers arrived to the scene they found a Sedan that had apparently crashed with
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A Thousand Palms man pleaded not guilty in court Thursday, after he was charged with the homicide of a 93-year-old Palm Desert resident. A felony settlement conference has been scheduled for December 20th. Benjamin Briones will remain in custody without bail. Investigators said Briones, 59, killed Jean Grace Willrich in her home in late November.
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Authorities have released photos of three suspects wanted in connection with armed robberies at two High Desert gas stations over the weekend. The robberies happened early Saturday morning. The first one happened at about 2:40 a.m. at the Circle K gas station in Twentynine Palms. An hour later, the same suspects robbed the Arco gas
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WEEK 2, TUESDAY: Tuesday was another long day in court for the jury and defendant Jose Larin-Garcia, the man prosecutors say killed four victims on February 3, 2019. The prosecution called two police officers to the stand. One says on the night of the murders, he saw a tall, thin figure, in dark clothing running
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