BANNING, Calif. (KESQ) – An ex-substitute teacher from the Coachella Valley who perpetrated lewd acts during online contact with a female student, as well as sexually assaulted another woman, was sentenced to six years in prison on Monday. Edward Noel Alvarado Valadez, 31, of Coachella was convicted of exhibiting harmful matter to a minor, sexual
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INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – An undocumented immigrant accused of sexually assaulting a 14-year-old autistic girl lured to his Cathedral City apartment on New Year’s Eve pleaded not guilty today to rape of a minor and other offenses. Enrique Bautista Vasquez, 20, was arrested in January following an investigation by the Cathedral City Police Department that
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MURRIETA, Calif. (KESQ) – A man and woman suspected of smuggling controlled substances to inmates at the Byrd Detention Center in Murrieta via the U.S. Postal Service were arrested today. A 29-year-old woman from Hemet and a 49-year-old man of Murrieta were taken into custody Friday and booked into the Murrieta jail on suspicion of
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HEMET, Calif. (KESQ) – A 36-year-old man suspected of stealing roughly $10,000 worth of Lego sets and other merchandise from local retail stores in Hemet was behind bars today. Hugo Omar Sanchez-Sanchez was booked Wednesday on suspicion of possession of stolen property and organized retail theft, according to the Hemet Police Department. Bail information was
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MECCA, Calif. (KESQ) – Two Coachella Valley residents were arrested in connection with the fatal shooting of a 17-year-old girl in the community of Mecca in 2025, authorities said today. Christopher Placencia Balderrama, 19, of Thermal, was booked into the Benoit Detention Center on suspicion of murder, according to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department. He
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Rebecca Haro’s preliminary hearing has been set for May 29 to determine if there is enough evidence to move the case forward against her in connection with the death of her son, Emmanuel Haro.
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RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KESQ) – A thump, screeching tires, and a stop. That’s the future of bringing pursuits to an end – or preventing them altogether – and it’s all thanks to a new tool being rolled out by the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department. The department said it began testing the Grappler system last March. It
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William Frank Rodriguez, the founder of Silvercrest Advertising, had his hearing delayed until April 6 due to defense attorneys still waiting on key discovery in the criminal case against him for an alleged deadly hit-and-run DUI crash.
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INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – Prosecutors intend to retry a man for voluntary manslaughter after a jury deadlocked on whether to convict him for allegedly helping a 22-year-old Rancho Mirage resident obtain the fentanyl that killed him. The Indio jury weighing the fate of Riley Jacob Hagar, 28, of Cathedral City acquitted him Tuesday of murder
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MECCA, Calif. (KESQ) – An 18-year-old man was shot and killed Tuesday night near the Mecca Sports Complex, according to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office. Deputies from the Thermal Sheriff’s Station responded at about 7:58 p.m. to a report of an assault with a deadly weapon at the intersection of Coahuilla Street and 6th Street
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Coachella Mayor Steven Hernandez is facing a nine-count grand jury indictment alleging conflict-of-interest violations and perjury tied to city actions and financial disclosure forms, to which he has pleaded not guilty.
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Editor’s Note: In an earlier version of this article, the headline incorrectly stated the woman was convicted of murder. She was convicted of voluntary manslaughter. MURRIETA, Calif. (KESQ) – A 35-year-old Arizona woman who fatally shot another woman without provocation at an Indio motel was convicted today of voluntary manslaughter. A Murrieta jury deliberated one
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PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) – An assault with a deadly weapon suspect fled from authorities in Palm Springs, prompting a vehicle pursuit that ended in the suspect’s arrest today, authorities said. Deputies responded to the 100 block of Pioneer Trail at 10:43 a.m. Tuesday, according to Sgt. Robert Martinez of the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office.
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MURRIETA (KESQ) – The parents of two young girls who perished, along with their pets, in a pre-Christmas Murrieta residential fire will be charged with felony offenses, authorities said today. Adam Keenan, 43, and Stacey Hales, 46, both of Murrieta, are accused of causing the blaze that claimed the lives of Emma Keenan, 12, and
Continue Reading INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – A 22-year-old Rancho Mirage man who died from fentanyl poisoning wouldn’t have had access to the pills that killed him without the direct assistance of a friend now on trial for murder, a prosecutor said today, while the defendant’s attorney countered his client can’t be blamed for the victim’s death because
Continue Reading LAKE ELSINORE, Calif. (KESQ) – Two men suspected of impersonating law enforcement officers and conducting a traffic stop on a victim have been taken into custody, authorities announced today. Deputies assigned to the Lake Elsinore Sheriff’s Station responded shortly before 10:50 a.m. Feb. 22 to the area of Grand Avenue and Corydon Road following reports
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RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KESQ) – Two people were fatally stabbed early today in downtown Riverside, and a search was on for a suspect. According to the Riverside Police Department, officers responded just after 2 a.m. to a report of a person down near Main and 12th streets, where they found two injured people. Paramedics were
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BANNING, Calif. (KESQ) – Jurors in the trial of a 67-year-old Palm Desert man accused of sexually abusing three children acquitted him today of a few charges but deadlocked on others, likely setting the stage for a retrial on the unresolved allegations. Following two days of deliberations, a Banning jury on Wednesday found Oscar William
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INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – A Coachella Valley Unified School District bus driver accused of molesting an elementary school student is slated to be arraigned next month on a charge of lewd acts on a child under 14 years old. Eric Ochoa Hernandez, 47, of Thermal was arrested last month following a Riverside County Sheriff’s
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INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – Border Patrol agents found more than $420,000 worth of cocaine after a vehicle stop near Indio last month, the El Centro Sector reported Wednesday. Authorities said a K9 unit alerted Border Patrol agents to the vehicle following a traffic stop on February 5. A search of the vehicle uncovered 18 bundles
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