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,
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PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) – A 15-year-old boy remained in custody today after allegedly running multiple red lights on a mini motorcycle and being found with an illegally possessed firearm in Palm Springs. Â Â A member of the Palm Springs Police Department observed the teenager on the motorcycle at approximately 8 p.m. Friday, according to
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CABAZON, Calif. (KESQ) – Steve De Leon was always friendly to everyone in the Coachella Valley, according to Bob Simpson, a close friend. De Leon was pronounced dead after a vehicle struck his bicycle and fled the scene early Sunday morning in Cabazon. Now, Simpson is honoring his friend’s memory by raising awareness about the crucial role
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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
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BANNING, Calif. (KESQ) – An April 25 trial date was confirmed today for a multi-convicted DUI offender accused of killing an off-duty Riverside County sheriff’s deputy and his 19-year-old daughter in a driving-under-the-influence wreck north of San Jacinto.  Scott Brandon Bales, 49, of Moreno Valley allegedly caused the 2022 collision that claimed the lives of
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Authorities are searching for a man who attacked a 14-year-old boy who was walking home from school Thursday afternoon in Twentynine Palms. The attack was reported at around 2:20 p.m. near Sunnyslope Drive and La Buena Tierra Avenue. According to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department, the teen was walking when he was approached by
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YUCCA VALLEY, Calif. (KESQ) – Authorities are investigating a suspected murder/suicide after two people were found dead in a home in Yucca Valley Tuesday afternoon. The incident was first reported at around 2:00 p.m. on the 6600 Block of La Habra Avenue. According to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department, the reporting party said they
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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
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INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – A felon who killed his year-old daughter and stabbed his pregnant wife after turning irate during a child custody exchange in Indian Wells was found guilty of murder and other charges today. Adam Slater, 53, of Palm Desert, killed baby Madalyn in 2020 during an act of rage that included a
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YUCCA VALLEY, Calif. (KESQ) – A Joshua Tree man was arrested over the weekend on suspicion of shoplifting at a Walmart and then getting in an altercation, resulting in two deputies being injured. The incident happened Sunday afternoon at the Walmart store on 58501 Twentynine Palms Highway in Yucca Valley. Deputies were called to the
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YUCCA VALLEY, Calif. (KESQ) – A man and a woman were arrested on suspicion of robbing a person during a planned meeting to buy a PlayStation 5 video game system in Yucca Valley. The robbery happened on the evening of Saturday, Feb. 22. on the 7300 block of Victoria Avenue. According to the San Bernardino
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RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KESQ) – A 39-year-old trucker accused of sexually assaulting a Jurupa Valley girl was charged today with forcible rape of a minor and other offenses. Nestor Fabian Gonzalez was arrested Friday following a Riverside County Sheriff’s Department investigation. Â Â Along with rape, Gonzalez is charged with sexual battery and annoying a child under
Continue Reading INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) – The jury began deliberating in the trial of a registered sex offender accused of fatally slashing his year-old daughter before throwing her off a cliff along Highway 74 south of Palm Desert, as well as attacking the child’s mother and a good Samaritan. Adam Slater, 53, of Palm Desert allegedly killed
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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. Â Â Cameron Francis Curtis, 33, of Palm Desert allegedly fatally struck Nancy Valdes, also of Palm Desert,
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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
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CALEXICO, Calif. (KESQ) — Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers at the Calexico West Port of Entry made a vehicle stop last week that led to the discovery of a total of 47 pounds of four different drugs. The smuggling attempt happened on Tuesday, February 18. CBP officers wanted a closer inspection of a car
Continue Reading RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KESQ) – Pretrial motions got underway today ahead of jury selection 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,
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The Drone as First Responder (DFR) programs goal is to enhance public safety in Palm Springs. The DFR program, recently approved, is a concept where drones are strategically placed on rooftops throughout cities, William Hutchinson, Palm Springs Lieutenant explained. “You have a team listening to 911 calls coming in,” Hutchinson said. “Those operators are sending
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RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KESQ) – A Riverside County man has agreed to plead guilty to filing false income tax returns after selling Stan Lee-signed memorabilia and receiving more than $1.2 million in proceeds which he never reported to the IRS, officials announced today. Mac Martin Anderson, 59, of Corona will enter a plea in downtown Los
Continue Reading Deputies are asking for the community’s help in finding a driver involved in a hit-and-run crash Wednesday morning in Yucca Valley that left a 74-year-old man with major injuries. The crash was reported at around 8:05 a.m. near the intersection of Grand Avenue and SR-62 (Twentynine Palms Highway). Authorities said the driver of a red
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