RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KESQ) – A former behavioral therapist who sexually assaulted a young girl with physical and psychological disabilities was sentenced today to 17 years in state prison. Mitchell Akira Takata, 23, of Los Altos, pleaded guilty in October to attempted sexual assault of a minor under 10 years old and lewd acts on a
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TWENTYNINE PALMS, Calif. (KESQ) – Three teenagers were arrested after allegedly attacking a man with an intellectual disability and attempting to start a fire at his home in Twentynine Palms earlier this week. The incident was first reported Wednesday at around 9 p.m. According to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department, deputies were called to
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RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KESQ) – A death sentence was handed down today for a Banning gang member involved in five killings — sometimes just for sport — over multiple years. During a hearing at the Riverside Hall of Justice Friday, Riverside County Superior Court Judge Matthew Perantoni affirmed the jury’s recommendation, imposing the death sentence on
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MURRIETA, Calif. (KESQ) – A jury was seated today for the mental competency trial of a man accused of ambushing and killing a 30-year-old Riverside County sheriff’s deputy responding to a domestic violence call. Â Â Jesse Ceazar Navarro of Lake Elsinore is charged with murder of a peace officer, attempted murder of a peace officer,
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INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – Three young men accused of opening fire on a crowded Thermal home, firing numerous rounds in a drive-by attack that continued even after sheriff’s deputies arrived to investigate, were charged today with multiple counts of attempted murder and other offenses. Eric Orozco Diaz, Guillermo Alexander Martinez and Gustavo Isbojet Barrera Pena,
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IDYLLWILD, Calif. (KESQ) – A 43-year-old man from San Mateo was officially charged Wednesday in the killing of an 18-year-old man whose body was found near a hiking trail in Idyllwild over 21 years ago, authorities said. James Landi was charged with first-degree murder. He appears in court on Wednesday afternoon at the Southwest Justice
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RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KESQ) – A man accused of sexually assaulting and pimping out a Temecula Valley girl for sexual services in Los Angeles County was charged today with human trafficking of a minor and other offenses. Â Â Nestor Alexis Aguirre Chavez, 20, of Wilmington was arrested last week following an investigation by the Riverside County
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RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KESQ) – Prosecution testimony got underway today in the trial of two convicted felons and another man accused of gunning down a 24-year-old Riverside resident after carjacking him and his girlfriend. Â Â Trezell Lamone Heckard, 30, of Vallejo, Anthony Antoine Wright, 33, of Indio, and Qevon Xavier Harvey, 27, of Desert Hot Springs
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Update 12/8/25 Two additional suspects were arrested in connection with the shooting. Both suspects are 18-year-olds who were taken into custody on Sunday, according to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office. No further suspects are believed to be involved or outstanding, the agency confirmed. Original Report 12/5/25 THERMAL, Calif. (KESQ) – One person is in custody
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INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – An ex-Riverside County sheriff’s deputy who abused his authority and perpetrated felony and misdemeanor crimes while off-duty was convicted today of stalking and more than a half dozen other charges, though jurors were unable to reach a unanimous verdict on one of them. An Indio jury deliberated two days before finding
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RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KESQ) – A convicted drug dealer who supplied a deadly dose of fentanyl to a 30-year-old Temecula man was sentenced today to 15 years to life in state prison. A Riverside jury in September convicted Quinn Aaron McKellips, 39, of Winchester of second-degree murder for the death of Calin Sender in 2020. Â Â
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INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – A months-long investigation into a juvenile found with a marijuana/THC vape pen has led to the arrest of an Indio man who is facing multiple charges of child sexual assault, according to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office. The case began on September 19, 2025, when a School Resource Deputy from the
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PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) – A report from the California Department of Justice found Palm Springs leads Riverside County in hate crime incidents for 2024. According to the report, Palm Springs recorded 10 incidents last year, with 34 in total for the entire county. That’s nearly a third of all incidents, and reflects a trend
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THOUSAND PALMS, Calif. (KESQ) – A 47-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of a burglary in Thousand Palms on Wednesday night. The arrest came after a burglary in progress was reported on the 72000 block of Ramon Road at around 8:45 p.m. Deputies arrived at the location and found the suspect, a Cathedral City resident,
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Update 12/5/25 The judge at Friday’s Felony Settlement Conference ordered Gaeta to be held on no bail, the District Attorney’s office confirmed. He is scheduled to return to court on Jan. 23. Original Report 12/4/25 INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – A court appearance for Marcos Cruz Gaeta, the 45-year-old man out on bail for a 2016
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INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – The family of Jamie Maher, a 30-year-old Indio woman who was killed in 2016, is now speaking out after the man arrested for her murder was released on bail and recently arrested in Indio. “When this monster shot my daughter seven times, including once in the face while she begged for
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TWENTYNINE PALMS, Calif. (KESQ) – A transient man was arrested after allegedly offering teens beer in exchange for sexual acts earlier this week in Twentynine Palms. Joshua Padore, 32, was arrested on Monday afternoon on the 71700 block of Twentynine Palms Highway. According to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department, Padore approached two teenagers and
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INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – A man accused of a suspected DUI crash that killed a La Quinta teen has now been charged with murder. Jose Villegas Orbe, 47, of Palm Springs, was back in court on Tuesday, where he received an additional charge of murder after the teen he struck with his car, Liam Cantu,
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PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) – A 41-year-old Palm Springs man was charged with possessing and uploading child pornography. Matthew David Pettineo was arrested last week along the 800 Block of Village Square North. The Riverside County District Attorney’s Office confirmed that the Riverside County Child Exploitation Team served a search warrant at the address, seizing computers and
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STOCKTON, Calif. (CBS News) – Four people were killed, and 11 others were wounded in a shooting during a family gathering in the Northern California city of Stockton Saturday night, authorities said. The suspect, or possibly suspects, remains at large. Heather Brent, a spokesperson for the San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office, told reporters in
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