Crime

One of two men accused in a confrontation with sheriff’s deputies that led to an exchange of gunfire, injuring a deputy and one of the suspects in Thousand Palms, pleaded not guilty today to felony charges. Jose Eduardo Rosales Perez, 34, of Desert Hot Springs, and 27-year-old Kristian Galeana were each charged with two felony

Update 10/20/23: Los Angeles residents Mason Barron, 21, and 24-year-old Raymond Garcia were charged along with Byron Lee, 19, of Compton with one felony count each of robbery, grand theft over $950 and organized retail theft, according to court records. Barron, who was also charged with two felony counts each of robbery, grand theft over

A Nov. 28 trial date was confirmed today for twin brothers and another man accused in a robbery that culminated in the shooting death of a 66-year-old man at the Desert Hills Premium Outlets in Cabazon. Emanuel Rick Burt and Elijah Ray Burt, both 20 and of Victorville, are accused with 19-year-old Reginald Charles Trice,

A former Cathedral City policeman accused of assaulting and harassing a former girlfriend must stand trial for making criminal threats and other offenses, a judge ruled today. Claudiu Murzea, 46, of Rancho Cucamonga was arrested earlier this month following a Riverside County Sheriff’s Department investigation into the alleged acts of domestic violence. He had already

A convicted felon who lit a fire that burned 100 acres on the north end of Banning this summer, prompting evacuations, was bound for state prison today to serve a four-year sentence after pleading guilty to arson. Andre Delgado Cox Jr., 45, admitted the felony count during a status hearing Wednesday at the Riverside Hall

A 40-year-old man who sent sexually charged messages to someone he believed was a 14-year-old boy in Palm Desert pleaded guilty today to a felony charge. Brandon Devon Bourgeois of Hemet pleaded guilty Wednesday at the Larson Justice Center in Indio to one felony count of contacting a minor with intent to commit a crime,

An 18-year-old man suspected of fatally shooting a 19-year-old in an apartment in Indio was charged with murder today.   Jacob Matthew Alvin Vargas of Indio was also charged with one felony count each of burglary and being a convicted felon and narcotic addict in possession of a firearm, according to court records. He also faces

Two schools in Coachella were temporarily placed on a precautionary lockdown after a shooting nearby. The shooting happened in the area of Highway 111 and 9th Street at around 3:47 p.m. The Riverside County Sheriff’s Office told News Channel 3 that the victim said a man pointed a gun at him when he was driving southbound

A 45-year-old man who fatally shot a man more than 20 years ago at an Indio intersection pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter today and was immediately sentenced to 15 years in state prison.   Enoc Calderon of La Quinta also pleaded guilty Monday morning at the Larson Justice Center in Indio to two felony counts of

A Cathedral City man who killed another man in 2017 in Banning out of jealousy over a woman was sentenced today to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Ronald Dean Ricks, 37, was convicted Aug. 16 of first-degree murder and jurors also found true a special-circumstance allegation of discharging a firearm from a

A 21-year-old man who broke into the Cabazon Outlets Mall, stealing thousands of dollars worth of goods with several associates, pleaded guilty today to burglary, as well as a charge in a separate case, and was immediately sentenced to two years in state prison.    Reginald Bernard Mitchell admitted the burglary count, along with firearm

A man was arrested after allegedly attempting to smuggle more than $1.5 million worth of liquid methamphetamine through the Highway 86 immigration checkpoint. The arrest happened last Thursday at around 9:00 p.m. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection said the driver, a 40-year-old from Mexico, approached the immigration checkpoint in a white commercial tractor. While