Crime

BANNING, Calif. (KESQ) – A convicted felon accused of carjacking a motorist at knifepoint in Calimesa and leading law enforcement officers on a chase into the Coachella Valley was charged today with kidnapping and other offenses.    Steven Christopher Mata, 33, of San Diego was arrested Sunday morning following the pursuit by Riverside County sheriff’s

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) – A 25-year-old was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence following a deadly crash early Wednesday morning on Interstate 10 near Whitewater. The crash was reported at around 2:20 a.m. on the I-10 and State Route 62. According to the California Highway Patrol, a Honda Civic overturned, killing the

CATHEDRAL CITY, Calif. (KESQ) – A probationer is awaiting charges today after Cathedral City police allegedly found two guns and drugs during a compliance check last week, authorities said. The department’s Post-Release Accountability and Compliance Team conducted the check Thursday in Desert Hot Springs on a man previously arrested on suspicion of a stolen vehicle,

UPDATE – 3/11/2025: INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – Jury deliberations began Tuesday at the Larson Justice Center in Indio in the trial of Jose Valles Meza. After more than a week of testimony, the prosecution called its final witness Monday afternoon. Riverside County Superior Court Judge James Hawkins ordered jurors to return to the courthouse Tuesday,

CABAZON, Calif. (KESQ) – A bicyclist was pronounced dead after being struck by a vehicle that fled the scene early Sunday morning in Cabazon. The crash was reported at around 1:25 a.m. on Seminole Drive, near Millard Pass Road. Police said the bicyclist was traveling eastbound on Seminole Drive when an unknown vehicle traveling behind

JOSHUA TREE, Calif. (KESQ) – A Desert Hot Springs man was arrested after being accused of embezzling over $300,000 from his former employer, the Mojave Desert Land Trust. Ernesto Jose Frias Ybarra, 45, was arrested on Wednesday. He has been charged with 23 counts of Embezzlement with an enhancement for Aggravated White Collar Crime and

RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KESQ) – Jury selection is slated to get underway Thursday for the trial of a former Palm Desert High School football coach accused of running over and killing a 64-year-old woman while driving under the influence.    Cameron Francis Curtis, 33, of Palm Desert allegedly fatally struck Nancy Valdes, also of Palm Desert,

Riverside County Sheriff’s Deputies were searching for a suspect in an attempted carjacking in Bermuda Dunes on Thursday night. They say a man hit a victim over the head and demanded their keys and other personal belongings just before 6:00 p.m., near Varner Road just east of Washington Street. Deputies searched the area and brought