Sacto 9-1-1

From Chelsea Phua:

A 52-year-old Rancho Cordova man accused of stealing from church coffers while he was the church's treasurer was arrested Wednesday on five felony charges of state income tax evasion unrelated to the theft charge.

Franchise Tax Board officials alerted Sacramento County Superior Court authorities that Owen D. Mosburg was wanted on the tax evasion charges. When Mosburg showed up in court Wednesday for a hearing on his grand theft charge, a sheriff's deputy arrested him in court, tax board spokesman John Barrett said

FTB officials said Mosburg owes the state more than $11,900 in unpaid tax. The agency's special agents said Mosburg allegedly filed fraudulent 2003-2004 state income tax returns and failed to file his 2005-2007 state income tax returns. During the years under investigation, Mosburg was employed by a Rancho Cordova building products company and earned more than $352,000.

Mosburg faces maximum of three years in state prison for each tax count if convicted.

Authorities said the failure to file tax returns contributes to the $6.5 billion tax gap California faces each year. The tax gap is the difference between the tax that is owed and the tax that is due.

According to a complaint filed on the grand theft charge, Mosburg stole from the Metropolitan Community Church of Sacramento between June 2003 and June 2005 when he was the church's treasurer.

From Kim Minugh:

The California Highway Patrol is declaring a two-year campaign to promote motorcycle safety a success after enrollment in a statewide safety program has reached new peaks, according to authorities.

The extensive media campaign began in November 2007, when the CHP received a $1.4 million grant from the Office of Traffic Safety, said CHP spokeswoman Jaime Coffee. Officials used that money to promote the California Motorcyclist Safety Program, which offers courses for new and returning riders, Coffee said.

Upon successful completion of the program, participants can earn a certificate that allows them to bypass the riding skills test required by the Department of Motor Vehicles for a motorcycle license.

The campaign included public safety announcements and awareness events. The result was a surge in enrollment in the CMSP: an all-time high of 70,053 students in 2008, Coffee said. Officials are expecting this year to close out with even higher enrollment figures, she said.

There are more than 1 million licensed motorcyclists in the state, Coffee said. It's important for motorcyclists and drivers alike to be aware of the safety issues associated with high ridership, she said.

"If you're going to ride, the best thing to do is get trained," Coffee said. "It's definitely for your safety and the safety of others."

Funds for the CHP's campaign have run out, but the CMSP courses are still available. Click here for more information.

Sacramento PD asking for public's help in Florin Road homicide

From Kim Minugh and Bill Lindelof

Sacramento police detectives are looking for witnesses with information about the death of a young man in the Florin Road area late last night or early this morning.

An employee reporting to work discovered the man's body about 7 a.m. in a parking lot between Jiffy Lube and Church's Chicken on the 2900 block of Florin Road, said Sacramento police Sgt. Norm Leong.

The employee called 911, and paramedics pronounced the man dead at the scene, Leong said.

The man had suffered trauma to his upper body "consistent with a homicide," Leong said, but he would not elaborate. Detectives suspect the man was killed late last night, after the nearby businesses had closed, or early this morning, Leong said.

Police described the victim as a man in his 20s. The Sacramento County Coroner's Office has not released his name, pending notification of family.

Anyone with information about this homicide is asked to call Crime Alert at (916) 443-HELP or text in a tip to 274637 (CRIMES). Enter the word "SACTIP" followed by the information. Callers can remain anonymous and may be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000.

From Ed Fletcher:

A pursuit of a suspected thief sparked a 60-acre fire Wednesday afternoon after a Lincoln man tried to evade police through an open field, igniting bone-dry grass.

The incident started at 12:13 p.m. with a report of a man attempting to steal a generator from a Secret Ravine Parkway construction site, said Dee Dee Gunther, Roseville Police Department spokeswoman.

When police arrived, the man fled, prompting a 13-minute pursuit. With the police on his tail, the man left Diamond Woods Circle, driving a 1995 four-door Saturn into the open field.

Spark from the vehicle ignited the fire, Gunther said, but police quickly took Patrick John Henry (left photo), 40, into custody.

He was arrested on suspicion of grand theft, evading a police officer with disregard for public safety, resisting arrest and violating parole. He is being held without bail in the Roseville City Jail.

The fire burned grassland before being contained, Gunther said. Units from Roseville Fire Department, Cal Fire and fire agencies from throughout the area responded, she said.

The fire burned near Diamond Woods Circle and the Cincinnati Avenue/Sunset Industrial area of Roseville, Gunther said. No structures in the area were damaged, she said.

About 4,400 customers of Roseville Electric suffered a power outage for about an hour, a Roseville Electric official said.

One of the customers affected was the Westfield Galleria at Roseville shopping mall. Power was restored about 1:30 p.m.

From Kim Minugh

California Highway Patrol officials announced more details this morning in the arrest of a man they believe is responsible for the only spree of freeway shootings in the region in recent memory.

Investigators allege that 23-year-old Kyle Douglas Frank, of Roseville, shot at four vehicles on four separate occasions during August and September. The shootings appeared to stem from road rage, investigators said, on Interstates 5 and 80, CHP officials said in a news conference this morning.

The series involved eight victims, two of whom were juveniles, officials said. Only one victim suffered injuries, and those were minor, according to the officials.

Investigators arrested Frank earlier this month. He was booked into the Sacramento County Main Jail and later arraigned on eight counts of attempted murder and eight counts of shooting into an inhabited vehicle with a special enhancement of personally discharging a firearm, according to records.

Frank remains in custody without bail. He declined an interview with The Bee on Tuesday.

CHP officials said that all victims were Hispanic or African American, and that investigators are discussing with the District Attorney's office whether to add hate crime enhancements to the charges against Frank.

They also are discussing whether to add child endangerment charges because children were in two of the cars Frank allegedly shot at, officials said this morning.

According to the CHP, the shootings occurred:

- At 12:45 a.m., Aug. 22 on eastbound I-80, west of Auburn Boulevard;

- At 8 p.m., Aug. 31 on northbound I-5, just north of Florin Road;

- Just before 10 p.m., Sept. 6 on northbound I-5, north of Florin Road;

- And between 7:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m., Sept. 9 on eastbound I-80 west of Antelope Road.

Investigators identified Frank through suspect and vehicle descriptions provided by victims, as well as a partial license plate provided by a victim, officials said. Ballistics testing has linked a handgun found in Frank's home to at least one shooting, and officials are awaiting further test results. The handgun also matched descriptions given by victims, officials said.

Frank has pleaded not guilty to all charges, his attorney, Paul Irish, told The Bee on Tuesday.

Irish said his client grew up in Sacramento, graduated from Kennedy High School and has some work history. He also said Frank as "some mental health history."

Frank is scheduled to return to court Oct. 13.

Here is an earlier version of this story:

California Highway Patrol investigators on Tuesday announced the arrest of a 23-year-old Roseville man they allege is responsible for a series of freeway shootings over the last two months.

Kyle Douglas Frank was arraigned this month on eight charges of attempted murder and eight charges of discharging a firearm into an occupied vehicle, all of which are felonies, according to Sacramento Superior Court records.

He is being held without bail at the Sacramento County Main Jail. He declined an interview with The Bee on Tuesday.

CHP officials are expected to release more details of the case this morning. But a news release issued Tuesday alleges Frank endangered the lives of children in two shootings and that he committed hate crimes. The district attorney's criminal complaint against Frank, however, includes no such allegations, and Frank's attorney, Paul Irish, said he was not aware of them.

The complaint does include allegations that Frank discharged a firearm while committing the alleged shootings.

According to the news release, Frank is accused in four freeway "shooting sprees" in August and September.

Authorities recovered a handgun at Frank's residence that has been linked to at least one of the shootings, and officials are waiting to see whether ballistics tests link the weapon to the other crimes, the release states.

CHP spokesman Officer Adrian Quintero declined to release more details until today's news conference.

According to the criminal complaint, the shootings occurred at unspecified on Aug. 22, Aug. 31, Sept. 6 and Sept. 9 and involved eight victims.

One victim's husband said his wife's car was riddled with bullets as she and her aunt tried to exit eastbound Interstate 80 at Auburn Boulevard.

Osiris Esparza, 18, was headed home from ballet class in Natomas on the evening of Sept. 9 with her aunt Monica Esparza when the shooting occurred, said her husband, 25-year-old Richard Means.

Means said Monica Esparza merged into the slow lane as she headed for the exit when she unintentionally cut off another car, which appeared to be "flying down the slow lane."

That car's driver swerved around Esparza's car, and yelled at the women, Means said. He pulled out a handgun and fired five or six shots, hitting Osiris Esparza in the leg, her husband said.

One bullet went into the back seat - where the couple's children usually sit - and another went through Osiris Esparza's headrest, Means said.

He said he was relieved to hear a suspect is in custody, but that he's not sure the arrest will allay his wife's anxiety in the car. Since the shooting, Osiris Esparza has been "terrified" while in the car, even though she is a "very cautious" driver, her husband said.

Irish, Frank's attorney, said his client has never been arrested prior to this month. Frank graduated from Kennedy High School in Sacramento and has "some work history," including a stint at Thunder Valley Casino, Irish said.

Frank also has "some mental health history," he said.

Frank has not entered a plea in the case. Irish said he in the process of reviewing incident reports and the allegations against his client.

"We're investigating all the facts right now," he said.

From Diana Lambert and Bee staff:

Natomas High School was locked down Wednesday morning after Sacramento police informed the school that a caller had reported to them that there may have been a suspicious person on an athletic field possibly carrying a firearm.

The lockdown, which took effect at 9:06 a.m., was removed at 9:48 a.m. after police and school officials reviewed campus surveillance tapes and could find no evidence of a suspicious person, said Heidi Van Zant, Natomas Unified School District spokeswoman.

About the same time, two armed men robbed the Schools Credit Union on Natomas Crossing Drive, about a mile from the school, said Konrad Von Schoech, police department spokesman.

Officials are unsure if the two incidents are related.

In the robbery, two African American men, wearing masks and dark clothing, ran northbound from the shopping center.

From Bill Lindelof:

Information given to a tip line has resulted in the arrest of three men on suspicion of stealing and then selling valuable metals from fire hydrants.

Roseville police arrested Robert Todd Stewart (far left), 44, of Orangevale, Kevin Paul Nelson (middle left), 29, of Citrus Heights and Justin John Bozarth (left), 30, of Shingle Springs, all on suspicion of grand theft.

Police were led to homes in Orangevale and Fair Oaks on Tuesday by a tip to Roseville Crime Stoppers. During a search of the homes, investigators found discarded fire hydrant shells and inexpensive parts.

Police say they believe the men stripped hydrants stolen from subdivisions under construction and sold the valuable brass valves and other parts to metal recyclers at a fraction of their original worth.

Anyone who has further information is urged to call Roseville Crime Stoppers at (916) 783-7867.

An 18-year-old El Dorado man died from injuries Tuesday after his car left Highway 49 and struck a tree.

The California Highway Patrol reported today that Michael Hicks was traveling south on Highway 49 just north of Mica Street toward Plymouth when his car crossed over the northbound lane on a slight curve and struck a large oak tree head-on.

There were no witnesses to the accident, which happened at 12:30 a.m Tuesday. Hicks was airlifted to Mercy San Juan Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 7:20 a.m., the CHP said.

From Bill Lindelof:

Roseville police today identified the woman killed in a traffic accident on Harding Boulevard as Della Ruth Daniels of Roseville.

Police said Daniels, 47, was traveling southbound on Harding Boulevard at a high rate of speed when her car left the roadway, knocking down a street light and hitting a tree. She was pronounced dead at the scene of the 5 a.m. Tuesday accident.

The accident continues to be investigated by the department's Major Accident Investigation Team.

From Hudson Sangree:

Another high-end racing bicycle belonging to a top athlete has been swiped from a Sacramento alleyway.

In February, Lance Armstrong's time-trial bike was stolen from a truck behind a downtown hotel while the seven-time Tour de France champion was competing in the Amgen Tour of California. The bike, valued at more than $10,000, was eventually recovered.

On Tuesday, Pat Sweeney had his $9,000 triathlon bike grabbed from his locked vehicle behind the Fleet Feet store he owns on J Street. He is scheduled to compete in the Ironman World Championship in Kona, Hawaii, next month and needs the bike for the race.

Sweeney may not be in Armstrong's league, but he placed 11th last year in his 50-54 year old age group in Kona. The event involves swimming 2.4 miles, biking 112 miles and running a full marathon.

Sweeney said he was in his store just before 10 a.m. Tuesday when he heard a commotion. A neighbor had seen a man smash a window and take Sweeney's racing bike from his SUV, parked in the store's alley lot.

Store employees scattered on foot and bikes and in cars trying to spot the thief, while police zoomed in on the neighborhood. But there was no sign of him, Sweeney said.

The neighbor described the suspect as a white male between 5 feet 10 inches and 6 feet tall, with short hair and wearing a tan jacket and shorts, Sweeney said.

The bicycle is distinctive, with a black frame and white lettering that says "Orbea," he said.

Sweeney is offering a $500 reward for the bike's return. Call his shop at (916) 442-3338 between 10 a.m. and 7 p.m.

Bee Staff

Crime reports indicate a Roseville man allegedly played the shoplifting equivalent of Russian roulette - and suffered the consequences.

Roseville Police officers arrested Abel Angel Gutierrez, 24, of Roseville without incident at his residence on Sunday evening on suspicion of burglary and possession of burglar's tools, according to a news release. He is free on a $10,000 bail bond, the release states.

Gutierrez was identified as a suspect in four shoplifting incidents in Roseville that occurred between June 4 and Sept. 9, the release states.

He is suspected of shoplifting video gaming accessories from retail stores, and then twice selling the stolen property to game stores that buy and sell used equipment, the release states.

Roseville Police investigators have been investigating the series of thefts since early September, the release states.

From Bill Lindelof:

Police arrested a Sacramento man they suspect of brandishing a rifle when a Sacramento Municipal Utility District worker tried to cut power to his residence.

Marcus Thomas, 34, was arrested on suspicion of committing six felonies, including possession of a firearm by an ex-felon or addict and possession of marijuana for sale.

Police said a SMUD worker, who had gone to a home on the 3800 block of Belden Street in North Sacramento Monday to turn off electricity, first knocked on the front door.

Getting no answer, the worker went through a gate to the back yard. The worker heard somebody in the home and then saw a man coming out a side door of the house holding a rifle against his mid-section.

The man with the rifle mentioned wanting to pay his SMUD bill, police said. Eventually, police were called.

Police said that when they came to the home, they also knocked on the door, but at some point, Thomas exited through a window and tossed what they described as an unloaded SKS assault rifle wrapped in a blanket into a neighbor's yard.

Thomas was then taken into custody.

From Bill Lindelof:

Roseville police are investigating the death of a driver whose vehicle struck a tree this morning on Harding Boulevard.

The woman, who was not identified, died at the scene of the accident that occurred about 5 a.m. on Harding near Douglas boulevards.

Harding Boulevard was closed between Douglas Boulevard and Estates Drive for several hours as police investigated the accident, said police department spokeswoman Dee Dee Gunther. She said the road was reopened at about 1:30 p.m.

From Bill Lindelof:

An arrest was made and 458 marijuana plants were confiscated in law enforcement raids across three counties last week.

The raids resulted in the arrest of Jonathan Farrell, 39, of the North San Juan area, a Nevada County Sheriff's Office news release states. Farrell was arrested on suspicion of growing, selling or transporting marijuana.

Search warrants were executed at nine locations in Nevada, Yuba and Sierra counties after a nine-month collaboration by the sheriff's Narcotic's Task Force with the federal Drug Enforcement Administration. Aircraft surveillance had spotted marijuana gardens on nearly every parcel where the search warrants were executed, according to officers.

Farrell was named as owner of most of the properties. A total of $10,000 was also recovered in the raids.

From Bill Lindelof:

Roseville police have released the name of the man who died in a traffic accident Sunday on Foothills Boulevard.

Police said Gary Tom Trevorrow, 55, of Roseville, was driving southbound on Fooothills Boulevard at Switchman Drive about 5 p.m. when he turned left into the path of a pickup. The driver of the pickup struck Trevorrow's car broadside.

Trevorrow, who police said was not wearing a seat belt, died at the scene. The pickup driver was treated for minor injuries.

The northbound lanes of Foothills Boulevard were closed for about five hours for investigation of the accident.

From Li Lou:

A gunman robbed a Citrus Heights church this morning, but then gave back the property and left, said Citrus Heights Police Department.

The incident occurred at the Antelope Road Christian Fellowship, 7951 Antelope Road, around 9:25 a.m., said Citrus Heights police spokesman Sgt. Eric Mattke.

A pastor discovered the man in the church office who did not belong there and escorted him out of the office, Mattke said. Then the man brandished a handgun and escorted the pastor back inside. But as they were back in the church office, the armed man changed his mind and returned the property he'd stolen. He left the church after that.

No shots were fired and no one was injured in the incident, Mattke said.

Citrus Heights police are looking for the suspect, who was described as 25 to 30 years old with dark hair and a scruffy goatee and a tattoo in Old English-style writing on his stomach. He was wearing a blue baseball cap, a white and beige long-sleeved shirt, baggy jeans and white tennis shoes. The suspect vehicle is a late-80s model Black Honda Accord, Mattke said.

The case is still under investigation, said Sgt. Gary Hendricks with Citrus Heights Police.

Regular Sunday church services were not affected and are going on as scheduled, said a member with the Antelope Road Christian Fellowship.

From Li Lou:

A 19-year-old male was shot and killed after an argument at a home party in Rio Linda early today, authorities said.

Sacramento County Sheriff's deputies responded to reports of several people involved in an argument at a home on the 6900 block of 8th Avenue and multiple gunshots around 2:30 a.m., said Sheriff's spokesman Tim Curran.

An officer with Twin Rivers Police Department arrived and found the victim sitting in his vehicle in the middle of the street. He had suffered a gunshot wound to his head and was pronounced dead at the scene a short time later, Curran said.

Witnesses told deputies there had been a large party and a fight broke out when several people, who were not invited to the party, were asked to leave. As party goers were leaving, the shots rang out and struck the victim who was driving away from the party.

A 20-year-old male was also in the car with the victim but was not injured, Curran said.

Police didn't identify the victim. No witness has claimed to see who fired the shots.

The Sacramento County Sheriff's Department is asking the public to help if they have any information about the incident. Call Sheriff's Homicide detectives at (916) 874-5155 or (916) 443- HELP. Or send a text message tip to 274637 (CRIMES). Callers can remain anonymous and may be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000.

From Kim Minugh:

Davis police arrested three men and a woman this morning after one suspect resorted to gunfire while seeking retribution for a perceived slight to the woman, according to authorities.

Nobody was injured, a Davis Police Department news release states.

About 1 a.m., Janet Delgado, 18, of Oroville began arguing with a man over a perceived slight at an apartment party on Catrill Drive, the release states. Delgado was kicked out of the party, but she returned about 2 a.m., backed by her brother, Jesse Delgado, 19, of Woodland and friends Danny Ruiz and Dimas Mora, both 20 and from Woodland, the release states.

Three of the suspects used baseball bats to try and force their way through the front door of the apartment, the release states. Party goers pushed back, and one was injured by a bat, the release states. One of the male suspects ultimately fired four shots at the apartment, but instead hitting an adjacent apartment and causing no injuries, police said.

The four suspects fled but were stopped by Davis police officers responding to the call, the release states. All four were booked into the Yolo County Jail.

In light of today's shooting - and two others in Davis over the last month and a half - Davis police suggest that people hosting parties with alcohol closely monitor their event, or ask a sober friend to do so.

"It is not uncommon in today's world of cell phones and text messaging to have a party that began as a group of friends turn into a venue in which 300 to 500 strangers show up," police wrote in the news release. "This often results in fights, assaults involving serious injuries, robberies and sexual assaults."

From Bee staff:

The Sacramento Police Department and the North Sacramento community today are hosting the second annual Cops & Community Celebration to recognized the partnership of the department and the community it serves.

The celebration is scheduled from noon to 5 p.m. at the William J. Kinney Police Facility at 3550 Marysville Boulevard.

Through a news release, Chief Rick Braziel said he believes that "without community support and involvement we cannot do our job effectively. We would like to thank all those who are working to make their neighborhoods a safer place and invite those who have not been involved to start participating."

The event will include free hot dogs, hamburgers, snow cones, car seat information, face painting, jump houses, tours of the police station, k-9 demonstration, Nascar race car, children's fingerprinting, Kids Make-it workshop (courtesy of Home Deport), and booths with crime prevention and community information, the news release states.

From Kim Minugh:

A 54-year-old man was hospitalized after suffering major head trauma when he crashed his motorcycle on the Capital City Freeway on Friday morning, the California Highway Patrol said.

Christopher Wells had just entered the eastbound freeway from Fulton Avenue and was traveling about 60 mph when a car abruptly changed lanes in front of him, a CHP news release states. Wells braked, lost control of his motorcycle and was thrown from the vehicle, the release states.

Wells, who was wearing a helmet, was taken to Mercy San Juan Medical Center with major injuries, the CHP states.

The CHP's investigation continues.

From Chelsea Phua:

A collision between a big rig and a motorcycle injured the motorcycle driver and his passenger and backed up traffic along eastbound Interstate 80 near Colfax for about 45 minutes earlier this evening, authorities said.

California Highway Patrol Officer Richard Ruiz said the female passenger on the motorcycle suffered a broken leg. The driver's injuries were unknown. Both were taken by helicopter to the hospital. The big rig driver was unhurt, Ruiz said.

The accident happened about 4:30 p.m. near the Cape Horn Road exit when the big rig, traveling in the right lane along the two-lane stretch of highway, tried to pass a slow-moving truck. Ruiz said the big rig driver failed to see the motorcycle when it moved into the left lane and pushed the motorcycle up against the center divider wall, pulling its driver and passenger along the wall for a short distance before the victims fell off the motorcycle.

The impact also caused the motorcycle to catch fire, but the victims were not burned, Ruiz said.

California Highway Patrol officials anticipate an increase of motorcyclists on Interstate 80 heading to Reno for a motorcycle road show this weekend. Ruiz cautioned other motorists to be mindful of their blind spots.

From Bill Lindelof:

The Sacramento Police Department will swear in 10 new police officers today, including five who formerly worked for the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department.

The ceremony is scheduled for 11 a.m. at department headquarters. The new officers, five men and five women, will bring the department's force to 704 sworn personnel.

The new officers are being added to the force as a result of the city in July receiving $9.5 million in federal stimulus money.

The police department was one of roughly 1,000 law enforcement agencies in the country to be allocated funding through a $1 billion Department of Justice grant.

Though $15 million of the DOJ money was slated for agencies in the Sacramento region, the area's largest law enforcement organization -- the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department -- did not receive a share. Subsequently, more than 100 sheriff's deputies were laid off.

From Chelsea Phua:

Sacramento police have arrested a 19-year-old woman in connection with the killing of two men who were gunned down in July behind their apartments on Seavey Circle.

Police allege that Priscilla Ramirez (left photo) instigated her cousin Phillip Gonzales, 26, and his friend Michael Armstrong, 21, to confront Everett Taylor, 28, by telling the men that Taylor had wronged her.

The July 21 confrontation in the Seavey Circle housing complex near Fifth Street led to Taylor and his 35-year-old friend, Deshawn Holloway, being fatally shot.

Holloway was pronounced dead on scene. Taylor died the next morning at UC Davis Medical Center from his injuries.

Police arrested Gonzales on July 30 and Armstrong turned himself him Aug. 2. Both men are being held without bail on two counts of homicide charges at the Sacramento County Main Jail, according to online jail records.

Police department spokesman Sgt. Norm Leong said Ramirez was arrested Thursday evening on suspicion of homicide at her residence in the 7200 block of Jerry Way.

Leong would not discuss the details of Ramirez's allegations that led to the deadly confrontation, but said she had a "dating relationship" with Taylor.

Ramirez "had directed these two men and told them that certain things occurred to her," Leong said.

In an earlier statement, detectives said they believe that Gonzales and Armstrong went to Seavey Circle that night looking for Taylor because they believed that Taylor had "mistreated a female acquaintance of theirs."

Residents of Seavey Circle spoke highly of the victims, praising them as exemplary fathers who took care of their children and helpful neighbors who looked out for other residents' welfare.

From Chelsea Phua:

Thieves are stealing fire hydrants and wiring from street lighting systems from construction areas in Roseville to sell the copper, brass and other metal that the devices and infrastructure materials contain, police said.

In a news release by the Roseville Police Department, police said thieves have hit three separate construction areas between Sept. 15 and Tuesday. They have stolen an installed water backflow device, several fire hydrants (remnants of one in left photo) and fire hydrant parts and copper wiring from street lighting systems.

The value of the stolen materials is estimated to be $20,000.

The dismantling of fire hydrants is a threat to fire safety in the construction zones and the thieves are also risking death or serious injury from electrical shock and high water pressure, police said.

Police are asking the public for help in reporting to 911 any suspicious activity or vehicular traffic in the construction areas after hours.

Anyone with information is asked to call Roseville Crime Stoppers at (916) 783-7876. Callers may remain anonymous and may be eligible for a cash reward.

From Ed Fletcher:

A former California Highway Patrol sergeant was sentenced to 300 days in Placer County Jail after pleading guilty to three misdemeanors, two counts of child molestation and one for possession of child pornography.

In August, Wayne Robert Alger (left photo), 37, of Roseville, confessed to molesting a 16-year-old girl in a home in July 2008 and committing a lewd act upon a 12-year-old Rocklin girl inside a vehicle in 2007.

Alger, who used to work in the Capitol Protection Section before his 2008 arrest by Rocklin police, will be required to register as a sex offender for life and will be placed on five years probation.

In the felony complaint filed against Alger in February, Alger was charged with seven sex offenses. In August, he entered a guilty plea on three counts.

Placer County officials said they were pleased with the result given the evidence. During the sentencing phase, the District Attorney's office asked for the maximum 365-day sentence. Alger's lawyer argued in court that 90 days were appropriate.

"We didn't think the incidents were of felony-level conduct," said Jeff Wood, the Placer County prosecutor handling the case. "The things we felt we could prove did not amount to felony conduct."

Before Superior Court Judge J. Richard Couzens sentenced Alger, who was a 10-year CHP veteran at the time of the arrest, heard from the victims' families.

"You are a disgrace as a man and as a CHP officer," the mother of the older girl shouted at him, according the a District Attorney's office report of the sentencing. "I hope you burn in hell."

The younger girl's mother described Alger as a "textbook predator" who befriended the family to gain access to her daughter.

The girl's father was one of Alger's best friends and was a fellow CHP officer.

"Instead of protecting the public from evil, he committed evil himself," the father said, calling Alger an embarrassment to law enforcement.

Alger did not make a statement in court.

From Kim Minugh:

A 43-year-old man and his mother are in custody in connection with the theft of $25,000 worth of sound equipment belonging to a church, Folsom police say.

Officers arrested Ronald Logston of Fair Oaks late Wednesday on suspicion of three counts of assault with a deadly weapon on a peace officer, two counts of evading arrest using a vehicle, possession of a controlled substance, possession of stolen property, possession of a stolen vehicle, possession of burglary tools, and possession of an illegal weapon, according to a Folsom police news release. Logston also was booked into the Sacramento County Main Jail for more than $200,000 in felony warrants unrelated to the case.

His mother, 63-year-old Janette Louise Ansted, also of Fair Oaks, was arrested on suspicion of conspiracy and possession of stolen property, the release states.

On Sunday morning, New Song Church staff members reported that a 16-foot trailer containing sound equipment had been stolen from the church office's parking lot on Blue Ravine Road, the news release states.

Soon thereafter, a resident on Auburn Boulevard in Sacramento noticed a man driving a white Chevrolet pickup throwing church signs into a dumpster behind a state building, the release states. The residents took photos of the incident and reported it to church staff members, who in turn notified police. The church signs being thrown away had been in the trailer along with the sound equipment, police said.

On Tuesday, a Folsom police employee saw the suspect's white pickup and copied its license plate, which furthered the investigation, the release states. Investigators later found the stolen trailer and, while conducting surveillance, stopped a man who hooked the trailer to a white Chevrolet pickup and pulled away, the release states.

The driver told police he was moving the trailer for Ronald Logston. While officers spoke to the driver, Logston's mother approached and spoke to officers. She was arrested for her alleged involvement, the release states.

Ronald Logston was arrested late Wednesday after leading officers on two separate chases, police say. A woman riding with Logston, 29-year-old Angela Lipari of Fair Oaks, was arrested on suspicion of possessing controlled substances, the release states.

Janette Ansted bailed out of jail Wednesday evening, police said. Logston remains in jail, held in lieu of $280,000 in bail, jail booking sheets show. Lipari also remains in custody in lieu of $59,371 in bail.

The stolen equipment was returned to New Song Church.

From Kim Minugh:

Elk Grove police arrested a 38-year-old man Wednesday on suspicion of molesting a 12-year-old relative of his, authorities said.

Detectives arrested Bradley Dayley of Elk Grove after finding evidence while serving a search warrant related to a child pornography case at his home, an Elk Grove police news release states. Detectives discovered video and photographic evidence of the molestation -- evidence Dayley had distributed over the Internet, the release states.

Dayley was arrested on suspicion of engaging in three or more sex acts with a minor under 14, distribution of child pornography and sexual exploitation of a child by means of film, photo and other means, the release states.

Dayley remains in custody in lieu of $500,000 bail, Sacramento County Main Jail booking records show. He is scheduled to be arraigned Friday.

From Bill Lindelof:

Two Sacramento police officers who work with the homeless were in the right place at the right time Wednesday when they arrested a man authorities said tried to stab a woman.

Officers Mike Cooper and Mark Zoulas arrested Edward Martin, 46, who is homeless, for assault on a 41-year-old woman, who also is homeless.

The officers were responding to a call about a woman with a medical problem at Maryhouse when a person entered the social service agency in the 1300 block of North C Street and said a knife-wielding man was outside and that police were needed.

The officers heard screaming outside, and when they exited the building, they saw a man slashing at a woman with a knife. The woman backpedaled and then ran, avoiding injury.

The suspect then brandished the weapon at other people who had gathered.

Officers spoke to the suspect, and one officer pulled a Taser while the other drew his firearm, said police spokesman Sgt. Norm Leong.

The man was taken into custody without further incident.

Cooper and Zoulas, members of the department's Problem Oriented Police unit, have been honored for their progressive approach by homeless advocates.

Both officers are known for taking people to medical appointments, to court dates or to social service programs in addition to executing their regular police duties.

From Bill Lindelof:

A ceremony to bring attention to losses endured by families and friends of murder victims will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. Friday on the west steps of the Capitol.

The event, which is open to the public, is part of the annual National Day of Remembrance for Murder Victims. Among ceremony speakers will be deputy district attorneys, a police representative and victim advocates.

Debbie Lowe, Sacramento Area Parents of Murdered Children chapter leader, said it is important for murder victims to be remembered.

"So often, our memories of those we have lost to violence are overshadowed by how they died," she said. "We want to remember the good times, the times we held them in our arms."

She said the images of the killing of a loved one can continue to haunt survivors. For more information about the Sacramento chapter call (916) 899-0090 or visit the support group's Web site.

From Bill Lindelof:

What began in 1934 as a local civic effort to educate drivers marks its 75th anniversary on Saturday when the Safety Center invites Sacramento area residents to a free celebration with refreshments, tours, prizes and entertainment.

The event takes place from 11 a.m to 4 p.m.

The most recognizable feature of the nonprofit Safety Center is Safetyville, U.S.A., the miniature community designed to teach elementary school children how to live safely in daily situations. The complex is visible to motorists when they drive by the organization's headquarters at 3090 Bradshaw Road.

The community could be Anytown. It originally was designed with a church, school, fire station, railroad station, telephone company, shopping mall and gas station. Participants Saturday can roam through Safetyville, which also features a replica of California's Capitol.

Visitors can pick up a "Passport to Safety" that lets them explore the centers' six major safety programs. Participants who get their passports stamped will be eligible to enter a drawing for a $500 travel voucher and other prizes; children who complete the task might win a birthday party at Safetyville.

Alcohol and drug remediation programs are the largest part of the Safety Center's business, but the organization also provides occupational safety training and motorcycle skills classes.

By Chelsea Phua and Bill Lindelof

Sacramento Police have arrested a 23-year-old Sacramento man in connection with the early Wednesday morning murder of a security guard for a midtown nightclub.

Police said Michael Weisz and a friend were removed from Badlands, the nightclub where Leroy Fisher, 64, of Sacramento, worked as a security guard.

"They weren't acting appropriately in the night club and were asked to leave," Sgt. Norm Leong said. The specifics of their unruly behavior and what prompted an altercation inside the club were not clear.

Later, at about 1:30 a.m. outside the Badlands nightclub parking lot at 20th and K streets, Weisz and his friend were returning to their car when approached by Fisher.

Police said they are still trying to determine what happened at the parking lot, where they said Weisz got into his car and purposely ran Fisher down with his car. Police are not releasing details of Weisz's friend's involvement, but said they are asking for more witnesses to come forward with information.

Leong said Weisz and his friend arranged to meet with police in San Francisco at 11.45 a.m. Police have interviewed the friend and will be releasing him. Police said they are not expecting more arrests at this time.

Leong said the guard worked for a company contracted to provide nightclub security.

The Sacramento Police Department asks anyone with information to contact Crime Alert at (916) 443-HELP or text in a tip to 274637 (CRIMES). Enter SACTIP followed by the tip information. Callers can remain anonymous and may be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000.

From Bill Lindelof:

Sacramento police have arrested a woman after she allegedly broke eggs over her 16-year-old son's head and chased him with a knife -- apparently because he ate the last pork chop in the house.

Chavonna Gough (left), 36, of Sacramento was booked into Sacramento County Jail on suspicion of endangering the life of a child and assault with a deadly weapon, both felonies, after the Tuesday afternoon incident in the family's Meadowview home.

Police spokesman Konrad Von Schoech said the teen and his mother had been arguing all day.

"The shocking thing is that the arguing was over food -- that the 16-year-old had eaten the last pork chop," Von Schoech said.

As the arguing escalated, the mother is suspected of breaking eggs over the teen's head and throwing a plate at him. The fighting got more serious when, police said, Gough went at her son with a knife.

The son tried to defend himself by holding his mother's hands, but Gough bit the teen and then punched him, police said.

Police were summoned by the another son who is 19 years old. The 16-year-old was placed in protective custody.

"There must be some underlying factors that has this family in turmoil," Von Schoech said. "We just hope they get the help they need."

From Andy Furillo:

A judge sentenced a convicted first-degree murderer to 50 years to life in prison Tuesday for the March 2007 shooting death of Michael Lamar Barron in a south Sacramento strip mall.

Sacramento Superior Court Judge Russell L. Hom imposed the term on Jim Cage, 29.

Prosecutors said Cage shot and killed Barron in the belief that the victim had previously shot him. There was no evidence in the case to establish that Barron had shot Cage.

From Bill Lindelof:

A Granite Bay woman has pleaded guilty to selling knock-off purses, wallets and other items at house parties.

Michelle Bunfill, 49, admitted to selling the counterfeit goods bearing trademarks of designers such as Gucci, Coach, Prada, Burberry, Kate Spade and Chanel, a news release from the U.S. Attorney's office for the Eastern District of California states.

Bunfill admitted that from June 2006 to August 2007 she sold $184,046 worth of fake items, a statement from federal officials stated monday. Two years ago, Placer County detectives found 500 counterfeit purses, wallets, sunglasses, jewelry and other items in Bunfill's home.

Bunfill made much of her money by selling the counterfeit items at "purse parties" throughout Placer and Sacramento counties, detectives said.

Investigators alleged at the time that Bunfill could make up to $1,000 at a party. Detectives said the purses were illegally made in China where manufacturers try to mimic material and design of brand-name goods.

Detectives said that some authentic high-end purses sell for as much as $1,500 each in a store, but the phony handbags at a purse party go for about $100.

Sentencing for Bunfill is set for Nov. 30. She faces a maximum of 10 years in prison and a fine of $2 million.

Her actual sentence, according to the U.S. Attorney's office, will be determined at discretion of the court, taking into account several variables.

Editor's note: A previous version of this story included an incorrect street for the home where police say they found marijuana. C Street is the correct location.

From Bill Lindelof:

A pot garden first spotted in an east Sacramento back yard by airborne police was busted this morning.

Residents of the home on the 4200 block of C Street told Sacramento police they have medicinal marijuana cards and that the plants were being raised for health reasons.

Police spokesman Sgt. Norm Leong said that a report will be submitted to the Sacramento District Attorney's Office for review of the resident's claim that the marijuana was for medicinal use.

One person was taken into custody on suspicion of having a deadly weapon -- brass knuckles -- Leong said.

The house was boarded up because of concern by authorities that electrical wiring and chemicals used in the growing process created a dangerous building.

Leong said the officers in the department helicopter spotted the marijuana growing in the back yard, leading to officers this morning using a search warrant to enter the location, where they found marijuana in the back yard, the garage and the home.

Leong said much of the marijuana appeared to have been harvested.

From Bill Lindelof:

A woman who was severely injured when her pickup collided with a garbage truck on Bradshaw Road this morning failed to heed a stop sign and rolled into the path of the oncoming vehicle, authorities say.

California Highway Patrol officers said witnesses told them a woman did not stop when approaching Bradshaw Road from Aldercreek Way at 6:05 a.m.

The 51-year-old woman from south Sacramento, who has not been identified, was eastbound on Aldercreek Way, when she failed to stop at a temporary construction area stop sign at Bradshaw near Gerber Road, the CHP said.

The driver pulled onto Bradshaw and her pickup was hit by a garbage truck driven by Roberto Mora, an employee for California Waste Recovery Systems. Mora was southbound on Bradshaw at about 40 mph.

Officers said Mora saw the woman's pickup but was unable to stop in time. The collision caused the garbage truck to roll over.

The woman suffered major injuries and was taken to Kaiser Permanente South hospital. Her condition has not been released.

Mora suffered moderate lacerations to his head and was treated at the hospital.

Traffic was closed in both directions on Bradshaw Road for about three hours.

From Bill Lindelof:

The removal of unruly patrons from a midtown nightclub preceded the death of a security guard who was hit by a vehicle outside the club early this morning, police said today.

The security guard, Leroy Fisher, 64, of Sacramento, died at UC Davis Medical Center after being hit in the Badlands nightclub parking lot at 20th and K streets.

"There was an altercation inside Badlands, and security did remove some people," said Sacramento police spokesman Sgt. Norm Leong. "Sometime during the evening, security re-contacted the people that were kicked out in the back parking lot."

That's when Fisher was run over, Leong said. So far, authorities are not releasing descriptions of a vehicle or driver.

"We do have some possible leads that we are looking into," Leong said.

Leong said the guard worked for a company contracted to provide nightclub security.

From Bill Lindelof:

Yolo County authorities are seeking more information to aid them in a court case involving a collision two years ago in which motorcyclists were run down and the hit-and-run vehicle allegedly hidden from police.

The crash, which occurred Aug. 27, 2007 on Russell Boulevard between Davis and Woodland, left one of the motorcycle riders critically injured.

Earlier this month, Noelle Warren was arraigned on a hit-and-run charge and her father, Lorin Warren of Dixon, was arraigned on a charge of being an accessory to a felony. Their arraignments followed several days of a preliminary hearing in which Yolo County Superior Court Judge Arvid J. Johnson found enough evidence for the father and daughter to stand trial.

Both are scheduled to return to court Oct. 30 to set a trial date.

Prosecutors alleged during the court hearing that Noelle Warren was driving her 2003 Chevy Tahoe when the accident occurred. The prosecution also presented evidence that Lorin Warren tried to cover up the accident by having the damage repaired.

According to a Yolo County district attorney press release, it took a week for authorities to find the Chevy Tahoe. Evidence presented at the hearing purported to show that the license plate of one motorcycle left a recognizable imprint on the bumper of the SUV.

Authorities believe that more people with knowledge of the crime have not yet come forward. Witnesses can contact the California Highway Patrol at (530) 662-4685.

From Bill Lindelof:

Davis police are warning residents of a spate of home burglaries.

Officers responded to eight home break-ins throughout the city between Thursday and Monday. Officers are alarmed that in half of those burglaries the residents were home -- increasing the chance of violence.

Police made arrests in one case in which an alert neighbor saw suspects leaving the scene and provided descriptions to officers. In a second break-in, residents described the burglar as a young man, about 5 feet, 6 inches to 5 feet, 9 inches tall, with a thin build and brown, wavy hair.

Police advise residents to lock doors and windows even when they are home. Burglars will test for unlocked front doors in an attempt to steal items such as purses, car keys and wallets just inside the door.

From Chelsea Phua:

A shooting suspect surrendered late Monday after a brief standoff with law enforcement officers in Sacramento.

Police said they received a report of a woman being shot in her shoulder at about 10:45 p.m on Mack Road near Brookfield Drive.

While police were interviewing the victim, Sacramento County Sheriff's deputies spotted a vehicle matching the description of the suspect's vehicle.

They gave chase, which ended at Center and Forest parkways. As law enforcement officers surrounded him, the suspect stayed inside his vehicle for a brief time before surrendering.

The woman was being treated at an area hospital late Monday.

From Chelsea Phua

Sacramento firefighters and police responding to a report of a burglary Monday night rescued an elderly woman from her burning home in the 7300 block of Windbridge Drive, authorities said.

Fire officials said details of the incident that happened shortly before 9:40 p.m. still are not clear, but said the woman initially was confused and thought someone had broken into her home, not realizing that it was on fire.

Police officers called for the fire department and firefighters found the woman in the back bedroom. She was taken to hospital with minor injuries. A fire captain suffered a laceration to his hand during the rescue and was also taken to hospital.

The cause of the fire is under investigation, fire officials said.

From Andy Furillo:

A Sacramento jury today found a second defendant guilty in last year's south area robbery murder of a 33-year-old Vallejo man.

Prosecutors identified Curtis Level Chapman, 21, as the gunman in the Nov. 26 shooting death of David Joshua Barreda, whose body was found in the trunk of his car on 40th Street.

A separate jury last week convicted Chapman's co-defendant, Richard Antonio Hundley, 20, of murder for being an accomplice to the robbery slaying.

Hundley's mother, Tammy Renee Turney, 49, is awaiting trial in the case.

According to evidence at trial, Barreda was enticed to a party at Chapman's house on Mendocino Avenue the night before he was shot and killed. Prosecutors said the suspects took Barreda's car keys so he couldn't leave, then shot him the next morning as part of the robbery before putting his body in the trunk of his car and driving it a few blocks away where it was later discovered.

Sacramento Superior Court Judge Patrick Marlette set an Oct. 16 sentencing date on Hundley and Chapman.

From Andy Furillo:

Closing arguments got under way today in the case of two men accused of murder in the beating death of a 90-year-old woman three years ago in North Sacramento.

Deputy District Attorney Kevin Greene said that the victim, Marie Oliver, had lived a good life, "and when you live a good life, your life shouldn't come to a brutal, tortuous end."

He characterized the defendants charged with her April 15, 2006, killing as "downright evil."

At one point in his closing argument for defendant Daniel Alan Russell, Greene took the woman's cane that he said the defendants used in their attack on her and demonstrated how they beat her with it.

"Whack, whack, whack," Greene said. "This is what they did, simply because they could."

Russell, 19, and his co-defendant, Calvin Eugene Pearson, 20, also are charged with burglary and robbery. The two counts also comprise special circumstance allegations against the defendants that could put them in jail for life with no chance of parole if they are convicted.

Greene ridiculed Russell's testimony that he admitted to police homicide investigators that he participated in the attack in order to protect an older brother.

"Please," Greene said. "The reason the defendant got on the stand and came up with that ridiculous story is because he's got nothing to lose."

Defense attorney Jo Ann Harris in turn argued that Russell's testimony was plausible and unrebutted by the prosecution.

She also implored the jury to accept Russell's testimony that his DNA was found inside gloves discovered at the murder scene because he had worn them during an aborted burglary attempt at Oliver's residence four days before she was killed.

She said the victim's blood was found on Russell's clothing because he had lent it to his brother before the attack on Oliver. Russell testified that his brother later returned the clothing to him.

Harris told the jury to discount the passion expressed by the prosecutor in his description of the victim and the injuries she suffered on the night she was killed.

"Every person in this room has a grandmother," Harris said. "I can understand the passion (Greene) feels. But any passion Mr. Greene projects to you is not a passion that the laws permits you to take on as your own."

From Andy Furillo:

Closing arguments got under way today in the case of two men accused of murder in the beating death of a 90-year-old woman three years ago in North Sacramento.

Deputy District Attorney Kevin Greene said that the victim, Marie Oliver, had lived a good life, "and when you live a good life, your life shouldn't come to a brutal, tortuous end."

He characterized the defendants charged with her April 15, 2006, killing as "downright evil."

At one point in his closing argument for defendant Daniel Alan Russell, Greene took the woman's cane that he said the defendants used in their attack on her and demonstrated how they beat her with it.

"Whack, whack, whack," Greene said. "This is what they did, simply because they could."

Russell, 19, and his co-defendant, Calvin Eugene Pearson, 20, also are charged with burglary and robbery. The two counts also comprise special circumstance allegations against the defendants that could put them in jail for life with no chance of parole if they are convicted.

Greene ridiculed Russell's testimony that he admitted to police homicide investigators that he participated in the attack in order to protect an older brother.

"Please," Greene said. "The reason the defendant got on the stand and came up with that ridiculous story is because he's got nothing to lose."

Defense attorney Jo Ann Harris in turn argued that Russell's testimony was plausible and unrebutted by the prosecution.

She also implored the jury to accept Russell's testimony that his DNA was found inside gloves discovered at the murder scene because he had worn them during an aborted burglary attempt at Oliver's residence four days before she was killed.

She said the victim's blood was found on Russell's clothing because he had lent it to his brother before the attack on Oliver. Russell testified that his brother later returned the clothing to him.

Harris told the jury to discount the passion expressed by the prosecutor in his description of the victim and the injuries she suffered on the night she was killed.

"Every person in this room has a grandmother," Harris said. "I can understand the passion (Greene) feels. But any passion Mr. Greene projects to you is not a passion that the laws permits you to take on as your own."

From Bill Lindelof:

Woodland police are seeking information on a group of men suspected of attacking a Davis man, cutting him with a knife and stealing his beer.

Police said the robbery at the Arco gas station, 450 County Road 102, occurred just after 1 a.m. Sunday when the Davis man went to the station with a friend. Upon leaving the business, the pair were attacked by a group of men, the exact number not known, who cut the Davis man's face and took the beer he had bought.

The victim was treated at Sutter Davis Hospital.

A description of the suspects was not available.

Police said the suspects fled in late 1990s Acura Integras or Honda Accords. One of the cars may have been white.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Woodland Police Department at (530) 666-2411.

From Li Lou:

Three people were shot in a drive-by shooting in south Sacramento early Saturday, said the Sacramento County Sheriff's Office. The injuries were not considered life-threatening. At least two gunmen were at large.

At 1:15 a.m., the Sheriff's Department deputies responded to a call from a residence on Sunrise Woods Drive where a house party was going on and found a person had been shot in the face, one in the leg and the third in the ankle.

Witnesses told investigators at least two suspects drove by the home and fired shots at people standing outside from the front and rear passenger area of what was described as a black Honda SUV. The suspects were wearing bandanas over their faces, said Sheriff's Capt. Scott Jones.

No suspects have been identified and no arrests have been made, said Jones.

Later Saturday, deputies found a vehicle a few blocks away, which had been burned and matched the description of the suspect vehicle. Detectives are still working to determine if the burned vehicle was related to the shooting.

From Matt Weiser

A 33-year-old man died Saturday after apparently drowning in the American River near Discovery Park in Sacramento.

Chris Latonio of Sacramento was boating with friends when he decided to jump over the side for a swim, said Sacramento Fire Capt. Jim Doucette. The man began struggling in the water, told his friends on the boat that he couldn't breathe, and then went under.

His friends dived after Latonio and pulled him back into the boat, but he wasn't breathing and had no pulse, Doucette said. They began performing CPR and took him to a nearby boat ramp, where fire crews met the group at about 1:54 p.m.

Doucette said the victim was not wearing a flotation device, and that drugs and alcohol did not appear to be a factor in the incident.

From Cathy Locke

A woman who apparently was tired and hungry ended up under arrest after she repeatedly dozed off while in the drive-through line at a fast-food restaurant.

Her offense, however, was not fatigue. Sacramento Police said Alicia Tavares, 35, of Sacramento was arrested on suspicion of hit-and-run driving and possession of a stolen vehicle.

Lt. James Hendrickson said officers were called to Church's Chicken restaurant on Florin Road shortly before 3 p.m. Thursday regarding a woman asleep in her vehicle and backing up traffic in the drive-through line.

Hendrickson said officers checked the license plate number and learned the vehicle had been reported stolen. They also discovered that it matched the description of a vehicle involved in a hit and run incident a short time earlier at Franklin Boulevard and Forest Parkway.

Hendrickson said Tavares passed a field sobriety test and did not appear to be under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

Margie Allen, 91, of Sacramento called The Bee this afternoon wanting to warn other seniors about a scam attempt that unnerved her Friday morning.

Allen said a phone caller claiming to be her grandson said he was arrested on drunken driving charges in Canada and needed $2,500 immediately. Allen said she didn't wire the money, but called her son to ask about the whereabouts of her grandchildren.

Allen was upset about the ordeal, and wanted to spread the word about the attempted scam.

Sacto 911 has posted several "Grandma" scam attempt stories the past two years, including a report of a spate of attempts in January in the Redding area. As reported then, Redding police said there are several variations of the scam, but the most common one involves a late-night phone call from someone who starts the conversation by saying something similar to "Hi Grandma. Guess who this is?"

When the victim uses the name of one of their grandchildren, the caller pretends to be that person and asks for money.

In several cases, the scammer says they have been arrested and need bail money. The caller is always out of the area and needs money right away.

Victims are asked to send money through Western Union or MoneyGram. If they caller says they need money for bail, they say they have a friend who will pick up the money.

Sometimes the caller will put another person on the phone who claims to be a law enforcement officer or jailer.

The money is sent out of the country in the majority of the cases.

Redding police offer the following suggestions to avoid becoming a victim:

• If you get a call from someone saying "Guess who this is," respond with "I don't know. Who is it?"

• If the caller knows your name and the name of the person they are claiming to be, confirm their identity by asking personal questions like their birth date, mother's name and the name of the street where they lived as a child.

• If they say they are in jail or at a police station, ask which one and the phone number so you can call back. Use directory assistance or the Internet to confirm the phone number and call back if needed.

• Call the parents of the person they are claiming to be and confirm the caller's whereabouts.

Police also suggest using extreme caution when sending money by Western Union or MoneyGram.

From Chelsea Phua:

Sacramento police on Friday arrested a 34-year-old man they say sexually assaulted at least two women in August.

Police said Albert Pouadora (left photo) pretended to be a law enforcement officer and approached women he thought were prostitutes to demand sexual acts.

About 4 a.m. Aug. 10, he approached a 16-year-old girl walking downtown and drove her to a vacant lot near 10th and D streets, where he sexually assaulted her, according to police.

Abut 4 a.m. Aug. 27, he approached a 49-year-old woman walking near Stockton Boulevard and 15th Avenue. He drove her to an alley near Alhambra Boulevard and Broadway and sexually assaulted her, police said.

Police released a sketch of a suspect Sept. 3 and received two tips between Thursday and today that led to them identifying Pouadora as the suspect, they said.

Pouadora was arrested on several counts of suspicion of sexual assault near his home in the 2400 block of L street and booked into the Sacramento County Main Jail.

Bee Staff

All the animals belonging to homicide victims Ed and Marilyn Helm of Roseville are accounted for, a friend of the family said.

Earlier today, friends of the family asked the public's help in finding one of the family's dogs that escaped during the confusion following the slayings Tuesday night.

Bee Staff

Capt. Scott Jones of the Sacramento Sheriff's Department will announce his candidacy to run the department on Monday, according to a news release.

Jones is one of several people expected to seek the sheriff's spot in the June primary.

Sheriff John McGinness has announced he will not seek another term. He said he would remain in office for the balance of his four-year term, until early 2011.

Others who have expressed significant interest in running include Sheriff's Capt. Jim Cooper, also an Elk Grove city councilman, and former Sacramento Police Chief Albert Najera.

From Chelsea Phua:

Sacramento police have arrested two men in connection with the killing of a 44-year-old man whose body was discovered in a June structure fire.

Police said Ronnie Vang (left photo) and Joson Vang (right photo) were charged Thursday with the killing of Keith Fessler. Ronnie Vang has been in custody since July 17 on suspicion of possessing methamphetamine for sale and parole violation, and Joson Vang has been in custody since July 22 on various warrants, according to a Police Department news release.

Investigators said they believe the pair killed Keith Fessler during a burglary attempt and set his home in the 7400 block of Carella Drive in the Meadowview area on fire to cover up the crime. They then took Fessler's guitars and wind surfing boards in Fessler's orange Honda Element, which they later burned near 68th Avenue and Tamoshanter Way, police said.

Firefighters discovered Fessler's body June 23 about 1:30 p.m. after putting out the fire.

Media reports of Fessler's stolen guitars led to detectives receiving a tip on the location of the guitar and the people trying to sell them, police said.

Police said the tip, statements and physical and forensic evidence enabled detectives to charge Ronnie Vang and Joson Vang with suspicion of homicide.

From Ed Fletcher:

A 20-year-old Roseville man was sentenced today to 21 months in jail as result of a 2008 DUI accident that claimed the life of his friend Brandon Keith, 20.

The accident occurred Dec. 20, 2008, when Brandon Mark Moreno (left photo), carrying four passengers, crashed his vehicle into a tree along Foothills Boulevard.

Another passenger, Joseph Castillon, suffered a spine fracture and lacerated liver. The fourth passenger was uninjured.

In June, Moreno entered a guilty plea to gross vehicular manslaughter while being intoxicated and two related felonies.

Moreno had been arrested on a DUI charge in Sacramento three weeks before the fatal accident, according to a Placer County District Attorney's office news release. The Sacramento DUI charge is still pending, the release said.

After being given credit for time served since the arrest, Moreno must spend another 240 days in jail. He was also given a suspended seven-year sentence. Violation of his parole conditions upon his release would trigger the seven-year prison sentence.

From Cathy Locke

Placerville Police and other law enforcement agencies are continuing to search for a man and woman believed to be suspects in the shooting death of a man in West Sacramento early Sunday.

But Lt. Kim Nida said students at El Dorado High and Markham Middle schools, as well as youngsters in area day care centers that were under lockdown early in the afternoon, have been released.

The lockdowns were ordered as a precautionary measure after a citizen reported a vehicle that matched the description of a vehicle involved in the shooting at 4205 West Capital Ave. in West Sacramento.

The citizen also reported seeing a man and a woman leaving the area. Nida said police officers stood by at the schools until students were off the campuses.

Nida said damage to the vehicle matched that described by West Sacramento police. She said Placerville police, along with the El Dorado County Sheriff's Department and California Highway Patrol have been searching an area north of Highway 50 between Cold Springs Road and Highway 49. As of 4 p.m., she said, the suspects had not been located.

Nida said the woman is believed to be Roico "Rosie" Carmenta Ibanez, 32, described as between 5 feet, 2 inches, and 5 feet, 4 inches tall and weighing 140 pounds. She was reported to be wearing dark clothing.

The man was described as only as Hispanic with a shaved head and wearing a green shirt and blue jeans.

Nida said the two are believed to be armed and dangerous. She advised anyone who sees them to call 911.

Nida said Placerville Police are working with West Sacramento Police investigators to determine whether the two suspects live or have relatives in the Placerville area.

From Denny Walsh:

A federal court jury after deliberating for a week, came in with a mixed verdict Thursday, finding Marc McMain Keyser guilty on five counts of mailing anthrax hoax packages to the Modesto office of a Congressman and two fast food establishments.

The jury acquitted Keyser on seven counts that charged him with mailing anthrax hoax packages to six media outlets, including The Sacramento Bee.

He was allowed to remain free on $25,000 unsecured bond with restrictive conditions. He is scheduled to be sentenced Nov. 30.

Keyser testified and confessed to the jury that he mailed approximately 120 of the hoax packages to a variety of recipients around the country, saying that he was motivated by his belief that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security had not prepared the American people for a real anthrax attack. He wanted the public to know that there will be such an attack and they should press the government for more information on how to protect themselves, he testified.

Bee Staff

Placer County sheriff's deputies arrested a man after they said he attacked two residents at an Auburn residence, according to a Sheriff's Department news release.

Udi Fishman (see photo), 59, of Los Gatos, is being held without bail at the Placer County Jail on charges of attempted kidnapping and burglary, the release states.

At 9:16 a.m. Wednesday, the Sheriff's Department responded to the home on Mount Vernon Road for a reported assault.

The suspect, Fishman, who was known to the homeowners, came to the house, the release states. Evidence found during the investigation suggests Fishman may have intended to kidnap one or both of the victims, the release states.

He forced his way into the home and pepper-sprayed two victims, a male and a female, the release states. A struggle then ensued between Fishman and the victims.

Both victims were treated for exposure to pepper spray and suffered no other injuries, the release states.

From Julie Johnson:

Detectives with the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department seek help identifying an armed man who robbed a Fair Oaks jewelry store in August.

The man (left), said to be in his 30s or 40s, stole more than $50,000 worth of jewelry from Birchfield Jewelry on Aug. 28.

Authorities say the suspect is a Hispanic or tan while male, about 5-foot-8 and weighing between 140 and 160 pounds. He was wearing a gray wig, sunglasses and brown shirt and shorts similar to the uniform worn by UPS drivers when he hit the store on the corner of Madison Avenue and Fair Oaks Boulevard, a sheriff's news release states.

He was carrying a cardboard box and clipboard when a store employee allowed him entrance through the locked entrance. The suspect then at gunpoint tied the employee's hands and feet and gathered his loot.

He was last seen leaving the store on foot, heading west on Madison Avenue.

Anyone with information about the robbery or the suspect can call sheriff's detectives at (916) 874-5115 or the Crime Alert hotline at (916) 443-4357. People can also send tips by text message to 274637 (CRIMES) and entering "SACTIP" followed by the tip information. Callers can remain anonymous and may be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000.00.

From Chelsea Phua:

A parolee sought by area law enforcement officers was apprehended Tuesday night in the Rosemont area after a two-hour search, Sacramento County Sheriff's Department officials report.

The parolee was found at 10:26 p.m. in a closet in an empty unit of a fourplex in the 2900 block of Norcade Circle, said Sgt. Tim Curran, sheriff's department spokesman. The man was identified as Frank Bray (left photo), 30, of Sacramento.

Curran provided these details about the incident:

A parole intervention team composed of agents from the state Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and detectives from the Sacramento Police Department received a report of an armed parolee at Vince's Motel, 9515 Folsom Blvd.

While en route, the team asked for assistance from the Rancho Cordova Police Department. Officers saw the suspect sitting in his vehicle outside the motel. They ordered him at gunpoint to exit the vehicle. He refused, put his vehicle in gear and rammed into the parole team's car and the police department's car. A parole agent then fired at the suspect, who wasn't hit.

The parolee fled the scene in the car and the ensuing pursuit ended at Norcade Circle. He left the car and fled on foot.

At 10:12 p.m., a citizen waved down officers to report a broken window in the empty fourplex, where the suspect was found.

From Chelsea Phua and Bill Lindelof:

Authorities have identified the couple shot to death inside their Roseville home after the alleged shooter reportedly forced his way into the home with handgun.

They are Edward Durkin Helms, 52, and his wife, Marilyn Elaine Helms, 49.

Roseville police identified the suspected shooter as Jason Christopher Lambert, 35, of Roseville.

Detectives are still investigating why the reported home invasion ended in a bloody scene.

The incident, which began when a 16-year-old boy called police to report an intruder in the home he shared with his parent, resulted in the shooting of his mother and father and the suicide of the intruder, police said.

All three people were found dead in an upstairs bedroom of the house on the 1600 block of Alnwick Drive late Tuesday night, police said. The teenager was unharmed.

"Nothing indicates that this is random," said Roseville police detective Jerry Wernli said. Police suspect no other people are involved in the killings.

Roseville police spokeswoman Dee Dee Gunther said that shortly before 9 p.m. Tuesday police received a 911 call from the son reporting that a man, whom he did not know, had entered his house and shot his parents. The boy escaped, although it's unclear if he fled the house before officers arrived, police said. He was taken to safety by officers.

Police said that although the teen did not know the suspected killer, the man was known to his parents. Detectives are investigating the relationship between the gunman and the boy's parents and also the motive for the killing.

About 10 officers responded initially, Gunther said. Police surrounded the house and closed nearby streets to traffic. They later summoned the Tri-Cities Regional SWAT team, which deployed a camera-equipped robot to check the interior of the house before team members entered the building at about 1:40 a.m.

Five cars, including two Sports-Utility vehicles, were parked outside the house, which was cordoned off with yellow crime scene tape. Detectives and crime scene technicians worked through the night and into today gathering evidence.

Autopsies will be conducted Thursday.

Bee Staff

The Sacramento Police Department is releasing surveillance photos of a bank robber with a bad sense of direction, according to a news release.

At 1:06 p.m. Tuesday, a masked man entered Umpqua Bank, 1545 River Park Drive, No. 101, and jumped the counter (see photo) into the teller area and demanded money, the release states.

The man then jumped back over the counter and exited the bank through the rear door, getting away with an undisclosed amount of money, the release states.

But the rear door of Umpqua Bank leads into an interior lobby shared by other business in the building.

The man ran into one of those businesses - American River Bank - and took off his mask, the release states.

Realizing his mistake, the man and retraced his steps and fled, but not before being caught on their surveillance system (see photo), the release states.

The suspect is described as a male black adult in his 30s. He is between 6'2" and 6'4" in height and weighs approximately 220 pounds, the release states.

He was wearing a black "Raiders" baseball hat, light colored long sleeve shirt (with vertical stripes), white pants and white tennis shoes. He wore a white mask over his face, the release states.

Anyone with information should contact Crime Alert at (916) 443-HELP or text in a tip to 274637 (CRIMES). Enter SACTIP followed by the tip information. Callers can remain anonymous and may be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000.

Bee Staff

Two suspects' plan to rob people responding to an ad on Craigslist to sell a vehicle foundered, in part, because the vehicle they were using as bait was a clunker, according to a crime summary from the Sacramento Sheriff's Department.

The clunker part became apparent, as well as the flaw in the plan, when one of the robbery suspects attempted to escape in the bait vehicle, according to the report written by sheriff's deputies.

The report laid out this chain of events:

At about 5 p.m. on Sept. 12, one suspect met with three people near Mojave Drive and Imperial Way who were responding to his ad on Craigslist to sell a vehicle. At the sales site, a second suspect appeared and two of the three people were robbed of cash at gunpoint.

The gunman fled on foot while the first suspect fled in the "sales" vehicle - only to see the vehicle break down a short distance away.

The robbery victim then observed the suspect getting into a white car and continuing his flight.

By this time deputies were descending on the area and guided by a California Highway Patrol helicopter they found the white car and arrested two suspects.

According to the crime summary, arrested were Ricky Hartway, 18, and a 17-year-old juvenile.

Online jail records show Hartway was booked on suspicion of two felony robbery charges and one felony attempted robbery charge. He was being held on $60,000 bail.

From Chelsea Phua and Bill Lindelof:

Police in Sparks, Nev., on Wednesday arrested a Cameron Park woman wanted for allegedly using yellow sticky notes to make off with illegal cash refunds from stores in California and Nevada.

Folsom police spokesman Officer Jason Browning said Kathleen Vinson (left photos), 31, was arrested about noon in the parking lot of a Holiday Inn hotel in Sparks.

Her boyfriend, Marciano Feliciano, 30, of Sacramento, who was with her, was also arrested. Browning said the couple was arrested on suspicion of possessing stolen property, a stolen vehicle and giving false information to a police officer.

Browning said alert Sparks police patrol officers spotted Vinson parked in the handicap lot of the hotel's parking area and became suspicious. When they questioned her, she became evasive and prompted them to conduct a search, which led to the officers to discover that she was wanted for a ruse that she allegedly commits using yellow sticky notes.

Police describe the caper: Vinson, who uses the alias Mrs. Kidwell, enters a grocery, video or other retail store and quietly places a note at an unattended register advising the cashier that he or she should "assist Mrs. Kidwell. She is a very nice lady and a great customer."

The notes usually also add that the cashier should give a full cash refund without a receipt. The items presented later for refund are stolen.

"She has been prolific," said Folsom police Detective Aaron Zelaya. "Mrs. Vinson has hit countless victims in several counties. The more agencies we call, the more crimes matching her operating methods we discover."

He said Vinson has been arrested before but eluded officers by presenting false identification. She is suspected of scamming retailers in Amador, El Dorado, Sacramento, Placer, Contra Costa, San Francisco, Alameda, Sonoma, Marin, San Mateo, Santa Clare and Yolo counties in California and Washoe County in Nevada.

From Bill Lindelof:

A body was found by firefighters extinguishing a blaze in an Arden Arcade apartment Tuesday night.

Authorities have not released the victim's identity, pending family notification.

Fire companies were confronted by a large blaze burning in a downstairs apartment in a complex on the 2400 block of Arden Way. The fire was controlled in about 10 minutes by 18 firefighters.

Four apartments were damaged by fire or smoke. Two familes were assisted with housing by the Red Cross, a Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District news release states.

Damage was estimated to be about $200,000.

From Chelsea Phua and Bill Lindelof:

Roseville police said today they are investigating why a reported home invasion ended in a bloody scene where three people lay dead.

The incident, which began when a 16-year-old boy called police to report an intruder in the home he shared with his parent, resulted in the shooting of his mother and father and the suicide of the intruder, police said.

All three people were found dead in an upstairs bedroom of the house on the 1600 block of Alnwick Drive late Tuesday night, police said. The teenager was unharmed.

Neither the mother, 49, the father, 52, or the suspected shooter, a 35-year-old man, have been identified, pending notification of family.

"Nothing indicates that this is random," said Roseville police detective Jerry Wernli said. Police suspect no other people are involved in the killings.

Roseville police spokeswoman Dee Dee Gunther said that shortly before 9 p.m. Tuesday police received a 911 call from the son reporting that a man, whom he did not know, had entered his house and shot his parents. The boy escaped, although it's unclear if he fled the house before officers arrived, police said. He was taken to safety by officers.

Police said that although the teen did not know the suspected killer, the man was known to his parents. Detectives are investigating the relationship between the gunman and the boy's parents and also the motive for the killing.

About 10 officers responded initially, Gunther said. Police surrounded the house and closed nearby streets to traffic. They later summoned the Tri-Cities Regional SWAT team, which deployed a camera-equipped robot to check the interior of the house before team members entered the building at about 1:40 a.m.

Five cars, including two Sports-Utility vehicles, were parked outside the house, which was cordoned off with yellow crime scene tape. Detectives and crime scene technicians worked gathering evidence.

Autopsies will be conducted Thursday.

The killings are an anomaly in Roseville, a city known for its low violent crime rate. 2008 FBI statistics ranked the city as the safest from violent crime in the region for cities of similar size. The last homicide in Roseville was in March 2007.

From Chelsea Phua:

A 41-year-old Elk Grove man pleaded guilty in federal court Tuesday to falsely claiming he earned a Silver Star for gallantry in combat 18 years ago during Operation Desert Storm.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Michelle Rodriguez said Eric Gene Piotrowski bought the Silver Star citation and medal on the Internet and claimed he exposed himself to direct enemy fire to cover for a team maneuvering to destroy an Iraqi tank during an Iraqi counterattack in 1991.

The Marine veteran told family and friends he received the medal and certificate in the mail after requesting a copy of his military records, according to an affidavit.

Without his knowledge, Piotrowski's family arranged for California Department of Veterans Affairs Undersecretary Roger Brautigan to come to his Elk Grove home on an evening in 2007 and formally present the medal to him, authorities said.

Piotrowski admitted in his guilty plea that he did not see military action in Operation Desert Storm.

He is scheduled to be sentenced Nov. 30.

In another similar case, a 60-year-old Sacramento resident was charged Thursday in a two-count indictment with unauthorized exhibition of military decorations and medals, including a Silver Star, and lying to the FBI about his purported service in Vietnam.

The indictment alleges Kenneth Jerome Nelson told FBI investigators that he earned one of his three Purple Hearts after he stepped on a spike and received an ankle wound while carrying an injured soldier on his back for 26 miles.

Authorities said Nelson never served in any combat role with the U.S. military in Vietnam or elsewhere and never earned any medals or decorations.

Nelson is known locally as an unofficial caretaker of the California Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

Under the Stolen Valor Act, which was enacted in 2006, it's a misdemeanor offense to wear military medals that were not awarded to lie about having been awarded such medals. The Silver Star is the third highest decoration awarded by the military.

"False claims about military heroism demean the record of the real heroes who have valiantly served this nation in the armed services," U.S. Attorney Lawrence G. Brown said.

From Chelsea Phua:

A 45-year-old Folsom man who defrauded investors in a $13 million Ponzi scheme was sentenced Tuesday to nearly 20 years in prison, authorities said.

U.S. Attorney Lawrence Brown said in a news release that Stefan A. Wilson, who is also known as Stephen K. Wilson, wiped out retirees' life savings and depleted money meant for college funds and inheritances by bilking about 80 victims and their families between February 2006 and February 2008.

U.S. District Court Judge Lawrence K. Karlton also sentenced Wilson to three years of supervised release and ordered him to pay more than $12 million in restitution.

Prosecutors said Wilson tricked investors by promising an 18 to 24 percent return for investing in the "Christians in Crisis" Investment Fund and required investors to produce a minimum of $100,000.

Of the $13 million he collected, Wilson placed about $6.5 million into a brokerage account to buy and sell stock, but lost nearly all the money, leaving only $30,000 in the account. However, prosecutors said Wilson continued to tell investors the fund was doing well and sent monthly statements and checks to show them that they were receiving the promised return.

Wilson used slightly more than $2 million to pay some investors, assuring them that the money was earnings on their investments. He used the rest to pay for a lavish lifestyle that included a $400,000 down payment on his Folsom home, a $118,000 down payment on a Lamborghini and a $90,000 down payment on a boat. Authorities said he failed to report this income on his 2006 tax return.

Wilson also changed his name from Stephen K. Wilson to Stefan A. Wilson before embarking on this scheme to conceal from investors that he had a 2002 fraud conviction and a 2005 bankruptcy, authorities said.

On March 17, Wilson pleaded guilty to wire fraud and filing a false income tax return.

At his sentencing, victims spoke about the financial devastation that Wilson's crime caused. One family said they lost a farm that had been in the family for 60 years and was paid off until Wilson convinced them to refinance it and another victim said Wilson took money from his son, a disabled war veteran.

They also said Wilson, a former youth minister, lied to them about donating 10 percent of his profits to Christian charities and they trusted him because of his affiliation with the church.

"The defendant's conduct was beyond reprehensible," Brown said. "He manipulated innocent investors and destroyed lives."

From Kim Minugh

A state employee and a former leader with the SEIU Local 1000 union was sentenced today to 25 years in state prison after he pleaded no contest to child molestation, possession of child pornography and manufacturing child pornography, according to the Sacramento County District Attorney's office.

The case against 50-year-old Jaime Enrique Feliciano, who works for the Department of Insurance, began with a tip in September 2008, the DA's office announced in a news release. Authorities searched Feliciano's Sacramento residence and found thousands of child pornography images on DVDs and in Internet downloads, which Feliciano viewed on his personal computer and a laptop owned by the Department of Insurance, the release states. Also on the computers, authorities found home-made child pornography showing Feliciano molesting a young female, the release states.

Feliciano had dissuaded the girl and her mother from talking to authorities, but the girl revealed the abuse after Sacramento County sheriff's detectives identified her, according to the release.

Feliciano had been convicted of child molestation in 1993 and was a registered sex offender, the release states. In 2006, he was convicted for failing to register.

Feliciano is a former president of one of SEIU's 50 district labor councils, which are located across the state. (An earlier version of this story incorrectly identified Feliciano's position with the union.)

Judge Laurie Earl handed down the 25-year sentence in the latest case.

From Kim Minugh

Superior courts across the region will be closed to the public Wednesday as part of a statewide cost-cutting measure forcing county courthouses to close once a month.

The closure is the first in a series scheduled for every third Wednesday of the month through June 2010. Courthouses will reopen Thursday, though likely with some backlog.

The state's Judicial Council voted last month to enact the closures, which are expected to save the state $94.3 million.

The move came with some local controversy.

Sacramento Superior Court Judge Maryanne G. Gilliard blasted the decision last month, saying some court systems, like Sacramento's, had the capacity to avoid the closures but were forced by the Judicial Council to close anyway. She also suggested other ways to save the needed money, including cutting the Judicial Council's operation arm, the Administrative Office of the Courts.

Other judges said they support the closure as a tough, but necessary budget-cutting move.

From Bill Lindelof

A 15-year-old girl who fire officials said worships the devil was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of arson for setting fire to her congregation's Orangevale chapel.

Firefighters were called to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints house of worship at 7950 Hazel Ave. Tuesday morning shortly after 7 a.m. Church members had already extinguished a fire in the chapel that caused about $2,000 in damage to pews and carpet.

While firefighters began to the process of removing smoke from the chapel, investigators began interviewing LDS members. Information derived in the interviews led investigators to question the teenage girl.

The girl then allegedly admitted setting the fire, said Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District Capt. Christian Pebbles.

"She said the reason she set the fire was because she hated the church and worshipped the devil," said Pebbles.

He said that there were 30-50 people on the church grounds but nobody except the arsonist was in the chapel when the fire broke out. Pebbles said that the girl reported to other LDS members that a fire was burning in the chapel.

From Bill Lindelof

A young Granite Bay woman was identified Tuesday as the driver killed in a rollover accident in Placer County.

Cassondra Mandeville, 21, was driving on Rocklin Road between Sierra College Boulevard and Barton Road on Monday afternoon when her SUV veered off the opposite side of the road and went down an embankment. The SUV flipped three or four times before coming to a stop.

Mandeville was ejected from the car. Placer County sheriff's deputies do not believe she was wearing a seatbelt at the time of the accident.

The department's Critical Accident Response Team is conducting an investigation into the cause of the accident.

Bee Staff

A U.S. District Court judge has sentenced a Folsom merchant to four months in prison and 36 months of supervised release for trying to sell designer knock-offs instead of genuine articles.

Ka Kit Lam, 39, now living in San Jose, earlier this year pleaded guilty to one count of trafficking counterfeit goods and services, a news release from acting U.S. Attorney Lawrence Brown's office states.

According to Assistant U. S. Attorney Kyle Reardon, who prosecuted the case, an officer with the Customs and Border Patrol in 2006 found that 56 boxes of merchandise containing counterfeit trademark-protected products.

The merchandise included purses, wallets, shoes, earrings, chains, and charms bearing the marks of Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Coach, Dolce & Gabbana, Christian Dior, Juicy Couture, Tiffany, Disney, and Hello Kitty, the release states.

The shipment was intended for Lam's home in Folsom, the release states. The value of the counterfeit items was estimated to be $58,335. The retail value of those items, had they been real, was estimated to be $1.2 million, the release states.

In 2007, a search of Lam's home turned up 14 boxes of counterfeit goods and a "stamper," which is used to affix counterfeit name tags to counterfeit items, the release states.

Lam admitted to importing counterfeit merchandise into the United States and selling and attempting to sell that counterfeit merchandise, the release states. He said that he traveled to China in May 2006 and bought 400 non-counterfeit purses, which he sold at a market in San Francisco, the release states. While selling these purses, customers asked him if he could get them counterfeit purses, the release states.

In September 2006, the defendant returned to China and purchased approximately $8,000 in counterfeit merchandise. These items were shipped by the defendant in October 2006 and seized by U.S. agents upon their arrival into the United States in December 2006, the release states.

In November 2006, the defendant received a shipment of nametags and authentication cards from China. By using a stamper, the defendant affixed counterfeit labels onto non-counterfeit, non-branded items to make them appear genuine, the release states.

Bogus authentication cards were intended to be put into the newly counterfeited items in order to deceive customers into believing that the items were genuine, the release states. The defendant affixed these tags in order to sell the items at local markets.

Judge William B. Shubb, in sentencing the defendant, said that the victims in this case were the manufacturers of the products that the defendant counterfeited, as well as the people who might buy those products thinking that they were authentic designer products, the release states.

From Bill Lindelof:

A man whose death was being investigated by homicide detectives today was identified by officials as Rudy Ramos, 34, of Loomis.

Ramos' body was found Monday afternoon in his Loomis home on the 3700 block of Berg Lane by a friend who came to his residence to check on him because Ramos was not answering his telephone.

Deputies said Ramos suffered trauma to his body. An autopsy was scheduled for Wednesday.

Placer County Sheriff's Department officials said there signs of a fight were found in the house but did not release further information.

From Bill Lindelof:

Five teenage students were transported to the hospital complaining of pain after an SUV collided with a city bus in Elk Grove this morning, authorities say.

The accident involving an e-tran bus and the SUV on Laguna Boulevard just east of Laguna Park Drive occurred shortly after 7 a.m. Elk Grove police spokesman Officer Christopher Trim said the SUV rear-ended the bus. Of the 30 people on the bus, eight were hurt. Three of the students complaining of pain went home with their parents.

Shortly after that, a car hit the SUV. Nobody was injured in that collision.

"The injuries were mainly complaint of pain," Trim said. "Nothing life-threatening. People were transported to area hospitals for evaluation."

The collision is under investigation.

From Bill Lindelof:

Yolo County coroner's deputies have identified the man killed when gunfire erupted over the weekend outside a West Sacramento night spot as Jesus Cortes-Heredia.

Cortes-Heredia, 27, was shot about 2 a.m. Sunday outside Ortega's West Night Club, 4205 West Capitol Ave. A coroner's official said that Cortes-Heredia was shot in his neck.

Officials did not release where Cortes-Heredia lived. Police said another victim suffered injuries that did not appear to be life-threatening.

Investigators said a fight broke out between one of the victims and a man who would later do the shooting. After the fight, the gunman got into an SUV and drove past Cortes-Heredia.

About three rounds were fired, police said, killing Cortes-Heredia and wounding the other victim. A security guard returned fire, hitting the rear of the SUV several times.

The SUV was described as red or burgundy, perhaps a Ford Expedition. The SUV also had large chrome rims.

From Julie Johnson:

A banner reading "Happy Birthday" in bright colors hung over the front door of a home in the 3700 block of Berg Lane in Loomis, where homicide detectives investigated a possible homicide Monday night.

A male victim was found dead in the home Monday afternoon. A friend had stopped by after he became concerned that the man hadn't returned his phone calls.

Sheriff deputies responded to his call just after 2:30 p.m.

"There were signs of an altercation," said Dena Erwin, spokeswoman for the Placer County Sheriff's Department.

The body had signs of significant trauma, Erwin said. Investigators haven't identified the victim or whether he lived in the home.

A Department of Justice forensic team and county investigators continued to search the home Monday night.

Neighbors say a man in his late 20s or 30s lived with a woman and two small children in the home, which sits toward the end of a row of modest homes facing a grass meadow.

Two doors down from the crime scene, Evan Cloutman stood outside his home with his wife, Nina Cloutman, and their two children and watched investigators work.

Cloutman, 29, said the man and his family moved into the semi-rural neighborhood within the past year.

He said their child was in the same kindergarten class as the man's daughter, and the children often played outside together. The man had just started to become more familiar with the neighborhood and their neighbors, Cloutman said.

"We all trust each other," Cloutman said. "He was just starting to get warmed up. He'd wave when he went by."

Down the street, Chris Decroix, 27, said the man and his family threw a party when they moved in.

"He's a real nice guy, a family guy, it seems like," Decroix said.

Sgt. Dennis Walsh with the Sheriff's Department said the two children were with their grandmother.

Officials continued to investigate the crime scene Monday night. They expect to identify the body Tuesday.

From Bill Lindelof and Julie Johnson:

A man was stabbed to death and his co-worker wounded in a knife fight early Monday outside an Elk Grove hotel.

Elk Grove police said they were called to the Extended Stay Hotel in the 2200 block of Longport Drive about 12:30 a.m. Officers found two men, ages 27 and 25, suffering from stab wounds to their upper bodies.

While being taken to the hospital, the older man died. Sacramento County coroner's officials identified the man as Eric William Lange of Vacaville.

The younger man suffered stab wounds officials say are not life-threatening. On Monday night, Patrick Koenig was booked into Sacramento County jail on suspicion of homicide, according to Elk Grove police.

Police said the men were co-workers staying at the hotel and were outside the lobby drinking alcohol when they began arguing. The argument escalated into a fight in which the younger man stabbed the older man several times.

Woodland police have arrested a man they suspect tossed a brick through the window of a Honda and then tried to hot wire the car before a watchful citizen alerted authorities.

Calvin Richards, 24, who is homeless, was arrested on suspicion of attempted auto theft and vehicle burglary after police interviewed him at the Grocery Outlet at the 1366 East Main Street about 6:30 p.m. Saturday.

Police had been called to the store after a citizen reported that a man had broken a window of a car in the store parking lot. Police say they believe that after Richards broke into the car, he rummaged through it and used tweezers and a pocket knife in an attempt to start the vehicle.

From Li Lou:

One man is dead and another seriously injured in a shooting in West Sacramento early this morning, said West Sacramento Police.

Police said it happened outside Ortega's West Night Club, 4205 West Capitol Ave. around 2 a.m. The deceased victim is a Latino man in his 20s. His name was not released pending notification of family members.

A second victim suffered injuries that do not appear to be life-threatening.

Investigators learned that there was a physical altercation between the gunman and one victim .

After the initial altercation was broken up, the suspect entered a vehicle, drove by the victims and fired approximately three rounds at them, police said.

An on-site security guard returned fire striking the rear of the suspect vehicle several times.

The vehicle was described by witnesses as a red or burgundy SUV, possibly a Ford Expedition. It is also described as having large chrome rims and will have bullet holes in the rear of the vehicle.

The investigation is still preliminary and no arrests have been made.

West Sacramento Police Department is asking the public to help if they have information regarding the incident.

From Bee Staff:

The Sacramento Fire Department says a playground fire at Charles Jensen Park early today was deliberately set.

In a news release, Capt. Jim Doucette said a fire investigator has determined arson caused the fire at the payground near Bing Maloney Golf Course off Freeport Boulevard.

Firefighters arrived in just over 5 minutes after the department was notified at 6:17 a.m. The fire destroyed part of the playground.

There are no suspects. Anyone with information can contact the Sacramento Fire Department Arson Tip Line at (916) 808-8732 or Crime Alert at (916) 443-HELP.

From Julie Johnson

The Sacramento Police Department on Saturday arrested a 57-year-old man for allegedly sexually assaulting a 14-year-old boy near the 3200 block of Florin Road.

Joseph Chapa was booked into the Sacramento County Main Jail on suspicion of charges related to lewd acts with a child, according to online jail records.

The boy's mother called police just after 11 a.m. Saturday to report the assault, according to Sgt. Norm Leong, spokesman for the Police Department.

"We believe Mr. Chapa was known to (the victim) but not related to him," Leong said.

Police are also investigating at least one other similar complaint about Chapa, according to Leong.

From Cathy Locke

One person was taken to the hospital with a gunshot wound to the leg following a shooting in the Rosemont area early this morning.

According to the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department, the incident occurred about 2 a.m. in the 3500 block of Hanks Street, west of Bradshaw Road near Old Placerville Road.

No further information was available.

From Cathy Locke

An arson fire caused an estimated $2,000 damage to a North Highlands playground this morning.

Firefighters responded to a playground next to Village Elementary School at 6845 Larchmont Drive at 6:11 a.m.

Capt. Christian Pebbles with the Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District said several plastic slides, attached to a central platform, were destroyed, though the platform likely can be salvaged.

The fire is believed to have been deliberately set because there was no source of ignition near the slides, he said.

The investigation is continuing, and anyone with information about the fire is asked to call the Arson Tip Line at (916) 566-4320.

"It is a felony," Pebbles said. "I look at it as a crime against children because it has taken away their ability to play there."

From Chelsea Phua:

Sacramento police said a 6-year-old girl who screamed and ran inside her house when approached by a man in his 50s on Friday afternoon did the right thing.

Sgt. Norm Leong said the child was walking outside to pick up something from the car about 1:25 p.m. near San Carlos Way and Seventh Avenue when a man with balding red hair walking on the street yelled to her to come to him.

She screamed and ran back inside the house to report the incident to her mother, Leong said.

It's not clear what intentions the stranger had, but Leong said the case is a good reminder for parents to talk to their children about handling strangers.

From Chelsea Phua:

A former life insurance agent who bilked at least a dozen Sacramento region retirees out of $435,000 to fund a gambling habit pleaded no contest Thursday to 12 counts of grand theft and burglary, authorities said.

California's Attorney General Edmund G. Brown Jr. said Maria Elna Flora, 59, of Sacramento persuaded her victims to shift their retirement savings into "sham real estate investments."

Flora will be sentenced Oct. 8 in Sacramento Superior Court to 13 years, four months in prison and ordered to pay her victims full restitution, authorities said.

According to a Department of Justice news release, from January 2005 through August 2007, Flora persuaded at least 12 people living in Butte, El Dorado, Sacramento, San Joaquin, Solano, Stanislaus and Yolo counties to invest between $5,000 and $88,000.

The investors ranged in age from 51 to 92. Flora encouraged them to shift savings from annuities, life insurance policies, certificates of deposit and savings accounts to her short-term investment that promised 10 to 20 percent returns, authorities said.

She told her victims that the funds would be used to make real estate loans to investors who would pay high interest rates.

In most cases, Flora made a few interest payments to investors, then stopped. She would promise her victims payment at a later date, but never did.

After Flora's former employer filed a complaint, the California Department of Insurance began an investigation in 2007.

Investigators found that Flora used the money to pay for her gambling habit, which included an almost daily slot play from January 2005 to August 2007 at Thunder Valley Casino.

Yolo County law enforcement officials arrested her June 18.

From Chelsea Phua:

Folsom police have arrested a 25-year-old Rosemont man for allegedly having sex with a teenage girl under the age of 15.

Michael Jagade Barron (left photo) was booked Thursday afternoon into the Sacramento County Main Jail on various sex-related felony charges, according to online jail records.

Police said Barron met the girl about a year ago on a social telephone chat line -- or "party line" -- and continued communication with her over the chat line and social media Web sites before persuading her to meet in person.

Police said Barron met the girl twice this summer. Investigators who interviewed Barron said he admitted to having inappropriate, illegal relations with the child.

Barron is being held on a $510,000 bail on charges that include suspicion of performing lewd act on a child, with enhancements for being more than 10 years older than his victim. Jail records also show other charges that include suspicion of communicating with a minor with intent to commit a sexual offense.

Barron is scheduled to appear in court Monday.

From Andy Furillo

A Sacramento judge granted the wish of a murdered woman's 10-year-old son today and sentenced her killer, Issiah Willie Jackson, to 110 years to life in prison.

"I just want the court to know that Issiah Jackson should stay in jail for the rest of his life because he took my mom from me," Isaah Keene-Crocker said to Superior Court Judge Russell L. Hom just before the sentence was imposed on the 33-year-old defendant.

Jackson was convicted two months ago in the Jan. 5, 2007, shooting death of his former girlfriend, January Keene, who was 30 years old when police found her shot and fatally wounded in the front seat of the defendant's car.

The judge sentenced the unemotional defendant in a packed courtroom that featured victim impact statements from Keene's mother and father as well as her son.

"My wish for (Jackson) is that he hear in his head, over and over again, as I do, my daughter, saying, 'Mom, I'm cold,'" Patricia Keene told the court. "And for him to see her son, standing over her grave, crying his heart out."

The victim's father, Patrick Keene, said that Jackson "has sentenced all of us to a life of misery," including the defendant's own family. "He needs to pay for what he has done."

From Julie Johnson

A 25-year-old El Dorado Hills man was sentenced Friday to 12 years and 7 months in federal prison for sex trafficking of a developmentally disabled girl.

Rishi Sanwal, 25, pleaded guilty in May to using force and coercion to engage a 17-year-old girl in prostitution.

The victim's mother gave an impassioned, tearful statement before the sentencing in U.S. District Court in Sacramento. She said Sanwal had taken advantage of her daughter, who is developmentally disabled and bipolar.

"With the intent of personal financial gain, he took her innocence," the victim's mother said.

The young woman's ordeal began with a night of drinking and playing pool on March 18, 2008. Sanwal met the victim at a Safeway parking lot in El Dorado Hills, according to court documents.

They were introduced by mutual acquaintances from the victim's school, and the group drank alcohol and smoked marijuana on the way to a Sacramento pool hall. That night, Sanwal took the victim to his El Dorado Hills home where they had sex.

The following morning, Sanwal drove the victim in a Hummer sport utility vehicle to a motel in Fremont along Interstate 80. For several days, Sanwal forced her to sell herself as a prostitute in Fremont and Rocklin. Sanwal and at least one other man, who then told her he would be her new pimp, raped and intimidated her.

Meanwhile, federal investigators and the victim's family had launched a search for the girl. She was found after she called a friend from Sanwal's cell phone and said she was in the Bay Area. Investigators traced Sanwal's phone to the Craigslist ads. Police found her in Fremont on March 25, 2008.

U.S. Judge Edward Garcia opted for the maximum sentencing for the crime.

U.S. Assistant District Attorney Kyle Reardon, who prosecuted the case, said the judge's ruling was "a stiff sentence I'm happy with." Sanwal's attorney, Jeffrey Kravitz, had no comment.

The victim's mother said her daughter still struggles with the memory of what happened and suffers from acute post traumatic stress syndrome. Though the victim was 17 years old at the time, her mother said she was developmentally 11 or 12 years old.

"He should be ashamed of himself," the victim's mother said in court. "I hope he thinks about what he has done to a developmentally disabled child."

Bee Staff

Folsom Police Department officers and California Alcohol Beverage Control agents arrested four people for alleged liquor law violations, primarily selling booze to someone younger than 21.

Arrested earlier this week were Youha Chun ,34, of Roseville; Lauralee Lewis, 51, of Auburn; Chandler Clemons, 21, of Washington; Michael Larson, 52, a transient, and Surjeet Boparai, 44, of Sacramento, according to a news release from the Folsom Police Department.

Boparai's arrest marked the second time in less than a month that a clerk at Discount Food and Liquor, 700 East Bidwell Street, was arrested for alcohol violations, the release states.

The business will face additional administrative actions from ABC, the release states.

Folsom PD Detective Roman Kehm said: "We will continue our efforts to reduce minors access to alcoholic beverages. This is a warning to adults out there; if your conscience doesn't stop you from purchasing alcohol for minors, we will."

Bee Staff

Noah Brommeland of the Placer County District Attorney's Office has been named "Investigator of the Year" by the California District Attorney Investigators' Association.

Brommeland, 36, a four-year veteran of the Placer County office, received the award Thursday night in Palm Springs at the association's 54th annual training conference awards banquet, according to a news release from the Placer County District Attorney's Office.

It is the first time that an investigator from the Placer County District Attorney's Office has won the honor, the release states.

Brommeland played a key role in the successful prosecution in January of Paul R. Kovacich Jr., a former Placer County sheriff's sergeant who was found guilty by a trial jury of murdering his wife in 1982, the release states. Kovacich was sentenced to 27 years to life in state prison.

To assist in the prosecution against Kovacich, Brommeland reviewed 11,000 pages of documents, conducted more than 85 interviews and wrote 58 new reports in just a few months, according to David Koppin, chief investigator of the Placer County District Attorney's Bureau of Investigation.

In past years, Brommeland was the lead investigator in two other high-profile trials that resulted in murder convictions by the District Attorney's Office, Koppin said.

These included the cases of Eric Dungan, who was found guilty of second-degree murder in the DUI-related death of Rocklin Police Officer Matthew Redding, and Timothy Brooks, who stabbed and killed a man in a road-rage incident in the Lake Tahoe area, the release states.

"Noah proved himself time and time again with his investigative tenacity, insightful analysis and dedication to overcome the most rigid and determined defense," Koppin said.

Brommeland said he was honored to have played a key role in the Kovacich investigation, which consisted largely of circumstantial evidence against the defendant, the release states. Only the top portion of the victim's skull was ever found in the 26-year murder mystery.

"There is no greater honor bestowed on a police officer than when you are entrusted with the investigation of the death of a human being," Brommeland said. "I am pleased that the Placer County community finally received justice for the victim, Janet Kovacich."

He also said he pleased to have spearheaded the committee that developed the protocol for officer-involved fatal shootings or other deaths.

"The investigations of these incidents are complex and have to be thorough," he said. "It was the goal of the committee to develop a protocol that assured the public that such incidents are investigated fully and independently."

Brommeland, a native of California, received his degree in criminal justice from California State University, Sacramento. He is working on a master's degree in public administration from Golden Gate University.

His law enforcement career began with the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Department, where he spent seven years and worked his way to the position of sergeant. He was also a member of the department's SWAT team.

Brommeland, who was hired by the Placer County District Attorney in 2005, is the office's fourth member to win a prestigious state award this year, the release states.

Senior Deputy District Attorneys Suzanne Gazzaniga and David Tellman, who were the prosecutors in the Kovacich case, were named "Prosecutors of the Year" by the California District Attorneys Association in June, the release states.

Brandon Olivera, another investigator for the office, was honored in July as "Officer of the Year" by the California Narcotics Officers Association, the release states. Olivera, hired in May by the District Attorney, won the award for his work with the Rocklin Police Department, the release states.

Bee Staff

To anyone who has ever used a gym locker to store more than their clothes, this is a horror story.

A Rancho Cordova couple was arrested Thursday afternoon for allegedly committing a series of gym locker burglaries in Rancho Cordova and Folsom, according to a Folsom Police Department news release.

Investigators from the Folsom Police Department's Criminal Investigations Bureau believe there may be more victims, the release states.

Keith Lewis, 29, and Nicole Lynn Coleman, 22 were captured Tuesday evening on closed circuit video allegedly stealing a wallet and valuables from the 24 Hour Fitness Center located at 1006 Riley Street, the release states.

Investigators tracked the couple to a residence in Rancho Cordova, the release states.

When officers arrived they say Lewis took them on a short vehicle pursuit endangering Lewis and Coleman's two toddlers who, unbeknownst to the officers, were riding in the back seat, the release states. The children were not injured, the release states.

Lewis is facing criminal charges for conspiracy to commit burglary, reckless driving, and possession of drug paraphernalia, the release states.

Coleman faces the same charges in addition to identity theft, receiving stolen property, fraudulent use of access cards, and destruction of evidence, the release states.

From Li Lou:

A Roseville man has pleaded guilty to molesting two young girls and faces a state prison sentence of 13 years and four months.

Raymond Earl Hyatt (left), 61, on Wednesday admitted guilt in Placer Superior Court to three counts of child molestation and one count of possessing child pornography.

He is scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 7.

Molestation of the girls, 7 and 8, began in April 2008 and lasted for one year, said Jeff Wood, a Placer County deputy district attorney, in a news release.

Roseville police investigated the case after the girls' father became suspicious of possible molestation and contacted the department, Wood said.

From Li Lou:

A vehicle struck and killed a 56-year-old man walking along Stockton Boulevard early this morning.

The name of the victim is being withheld until his family can be notified, the California Highway Patrol said.

He was struck about 12:30 a.m. by a black Toyota Forerunner driven by Kae Saephan, 19.

Saephan was driving north on Stockton Boulevard in south Sacramento and was approaching the intersection of Fleming Drive when he hit the victim, who was in the traffic lane, a CHP news release states.

The victim died at the scene.

Saephan was interviewed by authorities and found not to be under the influence of alcohol or drugs, the release states.

The CHP is asking witnesses to call (916) 681-2300 or (916) 861-1300 if they have information about the fatality.

From Andy Furillo

A 79-year-old retired law enforcement officer has been sentenced to 90 days in county jail after pleading no contest to two felony charges after he pulled his gun and flashed his badge at another motorist earlier this year in a case of road rage.

Buddy Trumbo, a former Placer County sheriff's deputy as well as a one-time Plymouth police chief and Department of Defense police officer at McClellan Air Force Base, was sentenced Tuesday in Sacramento Superior Court on his convictions for assault with a firearm and brandishing a gun on a public street.

According to court records, Trumbo must turn himself in Oct. 20 at the Rio Cosumnes Correctional Center. The records indicated that the 30-year law enforcement veteran has signed up for the sheriff's work furlough project and that he also will be placed on three years probation.

As a result of his conviction, Trumbo, a Citrus Heights resident who had a concealed weapons permit from the Placer County Sheriff's Department, will be banned from ever owning a weapon again for the rest of his life, according to the court records.

Neither Trumbo nor his lawyer could be reached for comment earlier today.

A statement from the victim in the case, James Torrez, 46, in the court file said that Trumbo "forced his truck in front of my vehicle, got out of his truck waiving his badge and telling me to get out of my vehicle." Torrez told the probation officer that Trumbo "later pulled his weapon on me and literally pointed it directly at me on several occasions."

"He was really acting like a lunatic, yelling, screaming and waiving his gun around," Torrez said in the statement.

Trumbo's probation report said the ex-cop tried to pull over Torrez because he thought the victim "was acting aggressively and appeared suspicious." The two were both driving in the Auburn Boulevard and Van Maren Lane area when Torrez pulled into traffic. The report quoted Trumbo as saying that Torrez' vehicle almost hit the defendant's car.

"Several times, I thought my life was over," Torrez told the probation officer. "I remember thinking, what will happen with my kids?"

Seven retired law enforcement officers wrote letters on behalf of Trumbo. Former Sacramento County Chief Deputy Sheriff Robert Denham said he has known Trumbo for 10 years and that "I have always observed him to be a man of honesty and integrity and calm and rational behavior ... Chief Trumbo has always exhibited a superior grasp of knowledge of the laws of this state and duties of a peace officer."

From Li Lou

A Galt man was shot to death Thursday morning and Galt police officer later arrested the man who fired the shot, although the shooting may have been accidental, according to a Police Department news release.

Information obtained by investigators suggests that the shooting in a house on Alice Rae Circle may have been accidental, the release states.

Officers responding to a report of a shooting found Gerardo Briseno, 19, dead from a single gunshot wound around 11 a.m.

The investigation revealed that two men were present when the shooting occurred, but left the house, the release states.

One of the men, Hector Quintero, 19, of Galt, was later arrested, the release states.

Quintero was the person who had control of the gun which fired the fatal bullet, said Lt. Jim Uptegrove with Galt Police Department. It could be that he was just playing with the gun, Uptegrove said.

A 20-year-old Galt man also was taken into custody, the release states. He lives in the house where the victim was found, but is not a suspect, the release states.

Galt Police will be reviewing the case with the Sacramento County District Attorneys Office for possible negligent homicide charges against Quintero, the release states.

From Li Lou:

Sutter County officials said an autopsy performed on the body of a baby girl found in the Sacramento River did not indicate whether she was stillborn or drowned.

The autopsy results revealed that the baby was a newborn with the umbilical cord and placenta both attached, full term and possibly Hispanic or white. She has been in the water for approximately a week, said Lt. Butah Uppal, who leads Sutter County Sheriff's Detectives Division.

The body was found by a Sacramento man on his routine evening walk, about 6:30 p.m. Wednesday on the east bank of the Sacramento River just south of the confluence with the Feather River.

Officials don't know if the child was breathing when she went into the water. However, there were no signs of trauma, sheriff's department officials said.

The cause of death is pending microscopic pathology reports, which could take a week or longer, Uppal said.

The sheriff's department is asking the public to provide any information regarding the case. So far, no witnesses have been found.

The Sacramento County Sheriff's Department is seeking Yan Leonidovich Akhumov (left photo) on a felony warrant for suspicion of possessing for sale of 1,000 or more counterfeit articles and failure to disclose the origin of a recording, Sacramento Crime Alert officials report.

Bail has been set at $750,000.

Akhumov is described as age 44, 5 feet 7 inches tall, weighing 213 pounds with black hair and brown eyes.

He was last known to live in the 900 block of Sacramento Avenue in West Sacramento, officials said.

Anyone with information about Akhumov is urged to contact Crime Alert at (800) AA-CRIME or (916) 443-HELP. Callers can remain anonymous and may be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000.

From Chelsea Phua:

Sacramento County Sheriff's Department arrested three inmates Thursday in connection with an attempted escape from the downtown jail last month.

One of them, 26-year-old Andre Pulido (left photo), was convicted in June of killing UC Berkeley scholarship student Rodrigo Rodriguez Jr., and was sentenced to life imprisonment with no chance for parole.

The others are Adam Ramsey (center photo), 21, and Alex Brown (right photo), 32, who were also facing various felony charges at the time of the attempted jail break, sheriff officials said.

The three were booked on charges of escape from prison with force or violence, conspiracy, discharge of a firearm at an inhabited dwelling and destruction of a jail/prison facility.

They are all scheduled to appear in court Monday.

Investigators said items found inside the jail and multiple witness interviews helped identify Pulido, Ramsey and Brown as inmates who had planned the escape.

Shooters drove past the jail at 651 I St. about 10:25 p.m. Aug. 16 and fired at windows, drawing the attention of a deputy standing outside the building on a terrace.

After the shots were heard, the deputy saw a light-colored vehicle leave the scene.

About an hour later, Sacramento police found a stolen vehicle near Arden Way and Evergreen Street in North Sacramento matching the description of the vehicle that the deputy saw leaving the shooting scene.

Windows on the fifth and sixth floors were struck by the gunfire, but no bullets penetrated the windows and no inmates or jail staff were injured by the shots, authorities said.

Investigators say they believed that the shooting suspects were attempting to shoot out the jail windows to launch an inmate escape.

On Aug. 31, Sacramento police arrested Jackie Phoulivanh, 20, and three days later arrested Rosetta Rogers, 18, for their roles in the attempt.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Crime Alert at (916) 443-HELP. Or send a text message by texting to 274637 (CRIMES) then enter SACTIP followed by the information. Callers can remain anonymous and may be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000.

From Chelsea Phua:

Authorities say they have arrested a 54-year-old man in Sacramento who fled Oregon 8 1/2 years ago after pleading guilty to sexually abusing his two adopted children.

FBI agents and officers from the Sacramento and Eugene police departments say Timothy Allan Clements (left photo) had assumed the identity of a dead man, William George Hamister, 62, and was living in south Sacramento when they knocked on his door Tuesday.

He was arrested without incident and is awaiting extradition to Eugene, Ore.

Clements committed the crimes in Eugene in the early 1990s and was arrested March 1, 2000, but released pleading guilty to four counts of sexual assault in the first degree and one count of sodomy in the first degree. He failed to appear for his sentencing that was scheduled Feb. 13, 2001.

From Chelsea Phua:

A 34-year-old woman convicted of having sex with one of her students when she was an intern teacher at McClatchy High School in 2005 has been arrested for allegedly violating her probation when she started seeing the student again last October.

According to a petition for violation of probation report filed Aug. 31 in Sacramento County Superior Court, Margaret De Barraicua (left photo) admitted to a deputy probation officer that she has been involved in an "intimate relationship" with the victim for about 11 months.

However, De Barraicua said in the report that the victim contacted her through a mutual friend about a year ago and threatened on many occasions to call her probation officer if she did not agree to meet with him.

De Barraicua told the deputy probation officer that she was trying to "figure out a way to stop the relationship," but feared the victim because he threatened to harm and kill her. She said that the victim had physically abused her and had broken her nose once, causing her to go to the hospital.

De Barraicua is being held without bail at the Sacramento County Main Jail and scheduled for a court appearance Sept. 21, according to jail records.

The victim was 16 years old and a student in a language and arts class that De Barraicua taught when authorities first discovered the relationship.

Police found De Barraicua and the victim having sex in her car, while her then 2-year-old child was strapped into a safety seat in the back.

De Barraicua was sentenced in November 2005 to five years of formal searchable probation after being convicted of four counts of unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor.

Bee Staff

Citrus Heights police are looking for the assailant who shot into a vehicle carrying several people on Interstate 80 on Wednesday.

One person was struck by a bullet in the road-rage attack but the injuries were not life threatening, according to a Police Department news release. No other information was released on the victim's condition.

The victims, all members of one family, were in a minivan on I-80 between the Greenback Lane and Antelope Road exits when the attack occurred.

An unidentified suspect quickly drove up behind the victims' vehicle then moved into the lane along the passenger side, the release states. He yelled at the victims before firing multiple rounds at the vehicle, the release states.

The suspect was described as a white male with short curly hair driving a late 1990s green sedan, the release states. It was last seen traveling eastbound on Antelope Road.

Anyone who witnessed the incident, or those with information about the suspect or suspect vehicle is asked to call the Citrus Heights Police Department at (916) 727-5500 or the Sacramento Crime Alert at (916) 443-HELP or (8000 AA-CRIME.

From Julie Johnson and Li Lou

Sutter County officials confirmed Thursday that an infant child found on the shore of the Sacramento River in Sutter County was a newborn girl. She had been in the water for about one week and was either white or Hispanic.

Medical examiners are waiting for lab results to determine how the child died. Her umbilical cord and placenta were still attached. Detectives haven't located a parent.

"We are seeking the community's help," said Lt. Butah Uppal, who runs the Sutter County Sheriff's detectives division. "If you know of anyone who was pregnant and is no longer pregnant, but has no baby to show for it, contact the sheriff's department."

A Sacramento man spotted the infant body during his routine evening walk along the river's edge off Garden Highway, just downstream from where the Feather and Sacramento rivers merge.

.
From Ed Fletcher

Who said law enforcement officers only know how to shoot first and ask questions later? One Placer County sheriff's sergeant is showing his softer more artistic side by painting a child-friendly mural for a county interview facility.

A 14-year veteran of the Sheriff's Department, Ty Conner (see photos) said he first started drawing in elementary school, but didn't get really start taking his art work serious until recently.

He's being commission to do dozens of works around the community, according to a press release from the Placer County District Attorney's Office.

The interview facility called the Placer County Multidisciplinary Interview Center in Roseville, tries to create a comfortable environment for children who may be victims of sexual abuse or mistreatment.

The mural depicts children playing in a backdrop of some of Placer County's more historic elements, including the American River and the Sierra Nevada mountains.

From Cathy Locke

Placerville Police have arrested two juveniles in connection with a spate of graffiti that appeared around town during the summer.

Capt. Mike Scott said officers were called to El Dorado High School about 1 p.m. Sept. 4, after administrators detained two youths, one of whom was caught tagging school property. Scott said the two admitted responsibility for graffiti at the school as well as several locations throughout the city.

The graffiti began appearing in early June and is believed to be gang related, he said, adding that the investigation is continuing.

The youths were arrested on suspicion of vandalism exceeding $400, but Scott estimated cleanup costs will run into the thousands of dollars.

"It's the most significant tagging that we've had in a while," he said.

The taggers targeted power utility boxes, and walls of roadway underpasses and overpasses, as well spots along bike trails, Scott said. Much of the cleanup cost, he said, likely will be born by the city.

Bee Staff

San Diego County authorities announced today that they have arrested 23 people, seized $70,000 in cash and shut down 14 marijuana dispensaries that were "operating under the guise of selling marijuana and marijuana-laced products for medicinal purposes."

"Like most San Diegans, I support the use of legitimate and legal medical marijuana use," said San Diego District Attorney Bonnie M. Dumanis. "However, it appears these so-called marijuana dispensaries are nothing more than for-profit storefront drug dealing operations run by drug dealers hiding behind the state's medical marijuana law."

She said 23 people were arrested as the result of a four-month undercover investigation, involving multiple law enforcement agencies. More arrests are possible, she said.

More than $70,000 in cash and six firearms also were seized, she said.

The 14 dispensaries and six residences that were searched are in San Diego and the surrounding area, she said.

Possible charges include the sale and possession for sale of marijuana, conspiracy and firearms offenses, she said. Those charges carry a maximum of penalty of up to four years in prison.

She said for-profit marijuana dispensaries are not legal according to state law and the State Attorney General's published guidelines. The AG's guidelines on medical marijuana allow non-profit collectives and cooperatives that cultivate marijuana to serve their legitimate patients if they follow rules, which include acquiring marijuana only from their members and reimbursing only reasonable costs like out-of-pocket expenses, she said.

(For a recent Bee story about pot dispensaries, click here.)

"We have not, and will not prosecute people who are legitimately and legally using medical marijuana," Dumanis said. "It's a shame that a few illegal drug dealers are trampling on the compassion shown by voters in passing California's medical marijuana law."

An initial review of the records at one dispensary reveals that more than $700,000 in income was generated in the past six months through the selling of marijuana and marijuana-laced products, she said.

Other law enforcement involved in the operation are the U.S. Attorney's Office for San Diego, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Internal Revenue Service, the San Diego Sheriff's Department, the San Diego Police Department and the San Diego Narcotics Task Force, according to a news release.

Photo below was taken at one of the dispensaries, according to the news release.

From Matt Weiser

The California Department of Fish and Game will stage three roadside checkpoints in Placer County on Sunday in an effort to catch hunting violations.

The event coincides with the opening of hunting season for gray squirrel, mountain quail and grouse. Two of the checkpoints will be near Foresthill, while the third will be in a remote area east of Foresthill.

"The checkpoint is there to find violations of the Fish and Game Code," said Placer County Game Warden Brian Moore. "It could be anything - out of season hunting or animals that are fully protected - that could come through."

The checkpoints, to be staffed by 16 game wardens, will be set up like a roadblock at each of the three locations from 3 to 8 p.m. Sunday. Wardens will stop vehicles to inquire about hunting and fishing activity and check licenses.

Wardens held similar checkpoints last year and caught a number of hunters who had taken more than the legal limit of squirrels, which is four per day.

From Li Lou

Roseville Police investigators are asking the public to help identify three people suspected of stealing 14 breast pumps from a children's products store.

They are suspected of shoplifting breast pumps with a value of more than $4,000 from the store on Galleria Boulevard around 7 p.m. Aug. 21, the Police Department said in a news release.

The suspects (see photos below) are described as a tan-complexioned adult female, with long dark hair, wearing a black T-shirt and light-colored jeans; and two tan-complexioned adult males, with short dark hair and mustaches. One of the males wore a white collared shirt with a zigzag pattern on one side, and dark jeans; and the other wore a dark shirt and dark jeans, the Police Department reported.

No vehicle was seen.

Anyone with information about the crime is asked to call the Roseville Police Investigation Unit at (916) 774-5070, or Roseville Crime Stoppers at (916) 783-7867. Callers can remain anonymous and may be eligible for a cash reward.

By Li Lou

A fire that has scorched 1,400 acres on the border of Colusa and Lake counties along Highway 20 is 75 percent contained this morning, Cal Fire officials say. They expect full containment on Friday.

Two firefighters suffered heat-related injuries and were transported to the hospital Wednesday afternoon, according to Kevin Colburn, public information officer for Cal Fire.

Firefighters had to deal with hot, dry conditions yesterday, said Colburn, and today's temperatures are expected to be higher.

The blaze started about 6 p.m. Monday northwest of Rumsey along Highway 20 and quickly spread through heavy brush. It is burning in the Cache Creek Wilderness Area and has threatened no structures, Cal Fire reported.

About 1,100 firefighters and 40 engines are involved in the fight. Gaining access to the fire is presenting obstacles in the suppression effort, since no established roads in the fire area. Dozers have been utilized in re-opening old dozer lines in order to improve vehicle accessibility, Cal Fire reported.

From Chelsea Phua:

Roseville police have arrested five people suspected of illegally buying large amounts of pseudoephedrine, a drug used in the manufacture of methamphetamine.

Investigators say they suspect that Domenick Lacurt Bryant (left photo), 32, of Sacramento recruited three people from the Loaves and Fishes area in Sacramento and promised to pay them for a day's work of purchasing the drug, more commonly known by its brand name, Sudafed.

They are Clifton Eugene Sorrell, 54, Micheal Lauvon McCune, 55, and Quincy Lamar Pierson, 32.

Bryant's friend, Khia Danielle Urans, 24, of Sacramento was also arrested.

The suspects were arrested on several charges, including possession of methamphetamine ingredients for sale, burglary and conspiracy. They are being held at Placer County jail on various amount of bail except Bryant, who is being held without bail, authorities said.

Authorities allege that the group entered a local pharmacy together about 1 p.m. Tuesday. Each bought a box of Sudafed. A check of the pharmacy log shows that Bryant had made other pseudoephedrine purchases recently, authorities said.

The group left together in a van.

When officers stopped the van, they found dozens of packs of pseudoephedrine pills, bought from numerous stores in Sacramento County.

Federal law requires customers to buy the drug from the pharmacy counter and to sign a statement acknowledging that they had not bought more than the legal amounts for a day or a 30-day period.

From Li Lou:

Traffic fatalities and drunk driving arrests fell over the Labor Day weekend compared to the previous year, the California Highway Patrol said.

Statewide, 12 motorists were killed in collisions between 6 p.m. Friday and midnight Monday, a 70 percent fall from the 40 fatalities during the same period in 2008.

Among this year's fatalities, nine victims were not wearing seat belts, officials say.

"Wearing a seat belt needs to become a habit for drivers and passengers alike," CHP Commissioner Joe Farrow said in a statement. "Buckle up every trip, every time. It may save your life or the life of someone you love."

DUI arrests during the Labor Day weekend also decreased to 1,417 this year from 2008's 1,586, an 11 percent reduction.

"Making an arrest is far easier than having to make a notification to the family member of someone whose life was cut short by a drunk or drugged driver," said Commissioner Farrow. "For every impaired motorist an officer removes from the roadway, it's potentially a life saved."

The holiday weekend was a Maximum Enforcement Period of CHP, which meant every available CHP officer was on duty. The CHP will participate in three more MEPs this year: Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's weekend.

From Li Lou:

A fire that has scorched 1,200 acres in Colusa County along Highway 20 continues to burn today, sending smoke into the Capay and Napa valleys.

Officials say they expect to fire to be fully contained Friday. It is 40 percent contained now.

The blaze started about 6 p.m. Monday northwest of Rumsey along Highway 20 and quickly spread through heavy brush. It is burning in the Cache Creek Wilderness Area and has threatened no structures, said Kevin Colburn, public information officer for Cal Fire.

About 700 firefighters and 32 engines are involved in the fight. One firefighter suffered minor burns, Colburn said.

Cause of the fire is not yet determined.

Colburn said he expects smoky conditions to remain in neighboring regions for the next few days, causing breathing problems for some people.

From Li Lou:

A Sacramento man who was part of an international identity theft operation pleaded guilty to numerous felony charges in federal court, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Tuesday.

Tien Truong Nguyen, 30, admitted guilt to charges of conspiracy, access device fraud, aggravated identity theft, and being a felon in possession of a firearm,

The defendant, also known as Tim Nguyen, is scheduled to be sentenced Nov. 19.

The conviction was the result of a joint investigation by the U.S. Secret Service, Placer County Sheriff's Office and Placer County District Attorney's Office.

Nguyen admitted being part of an international identity theft operation in which he used his computer to obtain credit and debit card numbers, social security numbers, e-mail addresses and other personal identification information from tens of thousands of victims.

The stolen information was provided to others who used it to obtain instant credit at Walmart stores throughout Northern California. Nguyen and his partners, including people in Romania, used the credit to purchase gift cards and merchandise valued at more than $200,000. They also used the information to create fraudulent credit cards and debit cards to make fraudulent purchases.

The Sacramento Police Department is seeking Pisa Keokongchack (left photo) on felony charges of suspicion of possessing marijuana for sale, carrying concealed firearm, possessing a firearm by a convicted felon and resisting or obstructing a peace officer, Sacramento Crime Alert officials report.

Keokongchack is described as age 27, 5 feet 8 inches tall, weighing 125 pounds with black hair and brown eyes. He is considered armed and dangerous, officials said.

He is known to frequent the Altos Avenue area of North Sacramento and Del Paso Heights, officials report.

Anyone with information about Keokongchack is urged to contact Crime Alert at (800) AA-CRIME or (916) 443-HELP. Callers can remain anonymous and may be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000.

From Chelsea Phua:

Rocklin police on Tuesday arrested a 21-year-old Sacramento man for allegedly fleeing a police pursuit in a stolen car.

During the chase, Andrew Michael Lynn (left photo) allegedly rammed a Chevy Suburban that had been stolen out of Roseville into a patrol car, the department's newest addition to its fleet, police said.

Officers spotted Lynn about 5 p.m. in the Sunset Boulevard and Pacific Street area. When Lynn saw officers, he allegedly sped away and tried to elude them by speeding through the parking lot of The Big K and onto area streets.

After less than a mile, Lynn apparently lost control of the vehicle and spun out. When officers surrounded the vehicle, Lynn accelerated into the front end of a patrol car, causing it significant damage, police said. The officer inside was not hurt.

Lynn then fled on foot in the 6000 block of Kingwood Circle. Lynn was tasered because he resisted arrest, police said.

Lynn was arrested on suspicion of felony evading, assault with a deadly weapon on a police officer, possessing a stolen vehicle, resisting arrest and violating parole.

From Chelsea Phua:

A 30-year-old Roseville man was sentenced Tuesday to three years and one month in prison for interfering with the safe operation of aircraft by shining a powerful laser on a commercial jetliner and a Sacramento Sheriff's Department helicopter, federal authorities said.

Balltazar Valladares (left photo) pleaded guilty June 8. U.S. District Judge William B. Shubb also placed Valladares under three years of supervision following his release.

"These years in federal prison should give anyone pause when contemplating as reckless an act as potentially blinding a pilot who is operating an aircraft," U.S. Attorney Lawrence Brown said.

Prosecutors said about 8 p.m. March 16, Valladares shined a bright green light on a Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 with 137 passengers as it was flying over Roseville, preparing for its descent to Sacramento International Airport.

Police initially could not find the source of the light.

About two hours later, the Sheriff's Department Air Unit STAR 5 flew over the Roseville and was hit by the laser. Authorities identified the laser as coming from Valladares' residence.

Valladares admitted to police that he had been shining the laser into the sky during the night.

Authorities said the laser possessed by Valladares was seven times more powerful than the standards published by the Food and Drug Administration and have the potential to blind those who look at it.

The laser can interfere with pilots several kilometers away and can cause problems during critical phases of an aircraft's operation, including takeoffs and landings.

From Chelsea Phua:

A 32-year-old Rocklin bicyclist died in a hit-and-run crash Monday night and authorities have arrested a 22-year-old Fair Oaks man suspected of hitting him, according to the California Highway Patrol.

Authorities said Thomas Sorci was eastbound on a blue GT mountain bicycle on Madison Avenue just east of Lincoln Oaks Drive about 8:25 p.m. when he rode into the path of a green 1993 Toyota Tercel driven by Marvin Hernandez, who was eastbound on Madison driving about 45 mph, CHP officials said.

Sorci was thrown from his bicycle and struck the roadway.

Officials said immediately after the collision, Hernandez stopped and removed the bicycle from under his vehicle before fleeing the scene in his vehicle. A citizen followed Hernandez and helped authorities capture him.

Hernandez does not have a California drivers' license. He was booked in Sacramento County jail on suspicion of felony hit-and-run and being an unlicensed driver.

Sorci was not wearing a helmet and was taken to Mercy San Juan Medical Center, where he died.

Authorities said alcohol or drugs do not appear to be contributing factors in the crash.

From Phillip Reese:

Police charged an off-duty Sacramento Sheriff's deputy with felony DUI Sunday after she plowed into an open Starbucks coffee shop in Natomas, injuring an elderly woman.

Lisa Gargano, 37, allegedly drove her SUV into the Starbucks near Arena Boulevard and Duckhorn Drive at 8:23 a.m. Sunday. Witnesses said she careened through the parking lot, hitting several curbs and another car before crashing into the building, police spokesman Sgt. Norm Leong said.

Seven or eight people were inside the coffee shop. Most were able to hop out of the way. The elderly woman, who police said was in her 80s, was trapped by the car. She was taken to a nearby hospital, and authorities said her injuries are not life threatening.

A Starbucks employee was also moderately injured.

Authorities believe Gargano, 37, was taking prescription medication, Leong said. He declined to name the specific medication, citing health confidentiality.

Sheriff John McGinness confirmed that Gargano is one of his deputies, but added that he couldn't say much more.

"It's a personnel matter," he said. "And Sacramento police have an open criminal investigation."

Gargano has been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation, McGinness said. He did not know how long Gargano had been on the force.

Gargano was booked and released from the main jail Sunday afternoon.

Ken Brown, had just ordered his coffee when, he said, "I heard this loud bang and a car came crashing through the window."

Brown jumped out of the way.

"Everybody is screaming, and there's a little old lady pinned against the ground."

Brown said the driver of the car continued to push on the accelerator ever after the car had come to a stop.

"She had a look like she had no idea where she was at," Brown said.

Bee Staff

A jail sentence for a San Jose State University football player who was convicted of battery was increased from 45 days to 60 days this week by a Placer County judge, according to a news release from the District Attorney's Office.

However, the player, Ryne Gonzalez of Loomis, will be allowed to attend school this fall and play football before he must report to the Placer County Jail for incarceration on Dec. 17, the release states.

Gonzalez, now 22, was found guilty by a jury last year of misdemeanor battery for a 2005 incident in Penryn in which he struck another man with his fist, breaking the victim's tooth, the release states.

Gonzalez, who plays linebacker for San Jose State, was ordered on July 7, 2008, by Placer County Superior Court Judge Joseph O'Flaherty to serve 45 days in jail - 30 in custody and 15 through alternative sentencing, which can include house arrest or monitoring.

The San Jose State student was given permission to do his jail time in the court's sentenced prisoner program, in which a person can serve in the Roseville Police Department's jail on a schedule that can work favorably around the person's job, family duties or schooling, the release states.

Prosecutor Jeffery Moore noted that Gonzales served only three days at the Roseville jail in January and just one day in April after the Police Department sent him a reminder that he needed to resume his jail time.

"But after serving the one day in April, he didn't return," Moore said.

Police notified the court about the situation and Judge O'Flaherty ordered Gonzalez to report to the Placer County Jail on Sept. 2 to serve all 45 days of his original sentence, the release states.

On Tuesday, Gonzalez' attorney, Robert Young of Auburn, filed a motion asking for a modified sentence so that his client would not lose his football scholarship. The Placer County District Attorney's Office opposed modifications, the release states.

In a hearing Wednesday, O'Flaherty allowed Gonzalez to return to school for the fall semester, but he imposed the increased jail sentence of 60 days to begin Dec. 17, and he placed other conditions on him, the release states.

If Gonzalez fails to show up for jail on the turn-in date or if he has any contact with the victim that he punched in 2005, he will be given an additional 90 days in jail, making it a 150-day sentence, the judge ruled.

Also, Gonzalez is no longer eligible for alternative sentencing, nor can he apply for the sentenced prisoner program in the Roseville jail. He will be given no credit for the four days he served in the Roseville jail earlier this year, the release states.

Prosecutor Moore said Gonzalez, whose football season began Saturday with a game against the University of Southern California, has been shirking his responsibilities.

"It seems as if he hasn't wanted to accept any responsibility," he said. "I want every defendant treated the same. I don't want there to be any appearance of favoritism for an athlete. I believe the victim in this case deserved justice right after the July 2008 sentencing - not at the defendant's convenience."

Bee Staff

Elaborate planning by four suspects to torch a vehicle only ended up earning them time in jail, restitution payments and the requirement to register as arson offenders for life, according to the Sacramento County District Attorney's Office.

All to collect $26,000 from two insurance companies - which now has to be paid back, according to a new release.

The final sentences were issued last week. Some of the defendants had been sentenced earlier. Sentenced arson and insurance fraud in the case were Anthony Woodcock Jr., 20; Frank Avery, 23; Kyle Cooper, 20; and Jarred Flory, 21, all of Rancho Cordova.

Avery, Cooper and Flory each received 180 days in county jail, and Woodcock received 240 days in county jail, according to the DA's office. Each of the defendants is also required to register as arson offenders for life and ordered to pay a total of $26,308.81 in restitution to two insurance companies, the release states.

The release gave this chain of events:

In 2007, Anthony Woodcock promised to pay Avery, Cooper and Flory $1,000 each to help demolish his 2006 Dodge Magnum.

Woodcock and Avery left the Dodge near the intersection of Grant Line and Douglas Roads in rural Sacramento County after driving a nail into a tire, causing it to go flat. They walked to a nearby residential area, where they had earlier parked Woodcock's truck.

During their walk, they called Cooper and Flory, who were waiting nearby, and told them where to find the car so they could burn it. Cooper and Flory set the Dodge on fire using gasoline and nitro methane. However, when the car exploded, Cooper and Flory suffered non-life threatening burns.

During their walk, they called Cooper and Flory, who were waiting nearby, and told them where to find the car so they could burn it. Cooper and Flory set the Dodge on fire using gasoline and nitro methane. However, when the car exploded, Cooper and Flory suffered non-life threatening burns.

During this time, Woodcock and Avery drove to a nearby convenience store, parked down the street, and pretended to make a call from a pay phone so they would be captured on the store video as an alibi.

They then drove back to the Magnum while firemen were extinguishing the blaze and told police at the scene that they had just returned to fix the flat tire. Woodcock later filed insurance claim for the loss of the vehicle.

From Bee Metro Staff

A man found dead Friday in a rural area of Placer County was probably murdered, according to a sheriff's department report.

About 4 p.m., police found Michael Glen Peacock, 48, in a travel trailer on Dalby Road in Sheridan. Peacock resided in the travel trailer.

"There are signs of foul play and we are investigating it as a homicide," said the report, which offered no other details.

From Chelsea Phua:

Citrus Heights police say they have arrested a 68-year-old man on suspicion of sexually assaulting a mentally impaired person.

Police arrested Norman Cattell (left photo) about 2 p.m. Friday while he was driving in the Sacramento area.

Police previously obtained a $1 million arrest warrant for Cattell. They say he has prior convictions of sexual crimes and is a registered sex offender.

From Andy Furillo:

A judge today found a Sacramento man mentally "not competent" to stand trial for murder in the beating death of a 65-year-old woman who worked in the group home where the man had been confined because of an earlier assault.

Sacramento Superior Court Judge Judy Hersher suspended criminal proceedings in the murder case against Ofiu Edwards Foto, who has been diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic, and ordered that an "appropriate evaluation" be conducted to determine where the defendant should be placed.

Foto, 40, who stands 6-2 and weighs 300 pounds, was accused in the Sept. 5, 2008, fatal attack on Pausta Theresia Sibarini with a wooden chair in the 44th Street group home where she was employed. Sibarini's husband, Tumber Purba, 69, also was severely injured in the same Sandy's Guest Home assault.

The defendant's attorney, Emory King, said Foto will be referred to the state's Conditional Release Program for a recommendation on his placement. Depending on the evaluation, Foto could be referred to another placement in the community, such as a group home, or into a state mental hospital.

Hersher scheduled an Oct. 2 hearing on Foto's placement.

Foto was living in a group home at the time of the Sibarini homicide as a result of pleading no contest to the earlier group home assault. In that 2006 case, Foto broke the jaw of a 76-year-old woman and kicked her in the head. Prosecutors said they settled for Foto's no-contest plea in that case because they feared he would be found not guilty be reason of insanity.

At the conclusion of her court calendar this morning, Hersher declined to make the court file on the current Foto case available to The Bee. The judge's clerk said the file needed to be updated into the court's information management system and that it would not be immediately available.

Meanwhile, Tumbur Purba and other survivors of his wife's death filed a civil lawsuit in Sacramento Superior Court today againt Sacramento County and the the state of California.

The lawsuit says that the county and the state should have known about Foto's "20 year history of violent attacks on others, numerous criminal convictions involving violent crimes and mental disorders, including chronic paranoid schizophrenia with auditory and visual hallucinations."

The civil defendants failed to warn Sibarani about Foto's past, the suit said.

Besides his 2005 attack on the 76-year-old woman, Foto also beat up a woman in Burlingame, breaking her jaw and knocking out three of her teeth. He also once smashed out the windows of a home in San Bruno and threatened to kill everybody inside.

From Kim Minugh

kminugh@sacbee.com

For nearly two years, a 44-year-old Lodi woman was allegedly held captive by her abusive husband, never telling authorities out of fear that she would be killed, deported back to her home country of China or thrown into jail, according to Lodi police.

She had no access to cash, and no car - her husband, 60-year-old Michael Patrick O'Riley, see photo, had hidden the vehicle from her, said Lodi police Cpl. Dale Eubanks. O'Riley only gave food to his wife, whom he met on the Internet and married in China, when she behaved herself - and only enough, it seems, to sustain her, Eubanks said.

The woman apparently reached her breaking point Thursday and called 911 as O'Riley started piling his nine guns into his car, according to police. As officers arrived to the home on West Lodi Avenue, she ran to one of the patrol cars and dove into an open window, crying for help, Eubanks said.

Police arrested O'Riley, a counselor at the Rio Cosumnes Correctional Center in Sacramento County, and booked him into the Lodi Police Department jail on suspicion of kidnapping, false imprisonment, various crimes of a sexual nature, terrorist threats, spousal battery and failure to provide for a spouse, Eubanks said.

He was scheduled to be arraigned today in San Joaquin Superior Court.

Police also seized his nine guns - both hand guns and rifles that Eubanks said are legal, but were confiscated because of the nature of the allegations. They also seized $23,000 in cash.

Eubanks said O'Riley met the woman over the Internet and traveled to China to marry her four years ago. They lived there for some time before returning to the United States, and had been living in a Lodi store front converted into a residence for roughly the last year and 10 months, Eubanks said.

That's when the woman said the alleged abuse began. It's unclear what exactly triggered it, though Eubanks said it appears to involve O'Riley's "sexual appetite."

He said sex seems to be the "nexus" of the abuse. The woman told police that she was forced to perform sexual acts against her will, Eubanks said.

Police have not found anyone who had been aware of the situation, Eubanks said. The woman has no family in the county, and didn't appear to have friends either, he said.

Eubanks said the woman is in the United States legally, but that she likely believed O'Riley's threats that if she called authorities, she'd be imprisoned or deported. And because of cultural differences, she might also have feared the police, or worried that they would not believe her, Eubanks said.

"She's all alone in the county and relying on him. Between his alleged abuse and what he's been doing to her ... she felt kind of isolated and felt kind of hopeless," Eubanks said. "She didn't know what she could do."

The woman had no visible physical injuries when police arrived Thursday, Eubanks said, though she complained of pain.

She is being looked after in a safe, though undisclosed, place, Eubanks said. She reportedly is doing well, he said.

Kim Minugh can be reached (916) 321-1038

From Andy Furillo and Lou Li

Sacramento police this morning blocked off the intersection of 7th and H streets because of a suspicious package that they found leaning against a traffic light, but the box was found not be dangerous.

The box was found to contain old telephones and backpacks, police said.

The incident around 9 a.m. also briefly stopped the light-rail line to the train station.

The Sacramento Police Department has released a composite sketch (left) of a suspect wanted in two sexual assaults.

A police department news release provides these details:

At 4 a.m. Aug. 10, a 16-year-old girl was walking downtown when she was contacted by the suspect. The suspect drove her to a vacant lot near 10th and D streets, where he sexually assaulted her.

At 4 a.m. Aug. 27, 2009, a 49-year-old woman was walking near Stockton Boulevard and 15th Avenue, when she was contacted by the suspect. The suspect drove her to an alley near Alhambra Boulevard and Broadway, where he sexually assaulted her.

The suspect is described as in his 20s or early 30s, heavyset, with dark skin and short dark hair. The suspect was driving possibly a newer gold or beige two-door car described as possibly being a Nissan with a rear spoiler.

The police department urges anyone with information pertaining to this crime to contact Crime Alert at (916) 443-HELP or text in a tip to 274637 (CRIMES). Enter SACTIP followed by the tip information. Callers can remain anonymous and may be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000.

-- Bee staff

From Kim Minugh:

Sacramento police have arrested a second female suspect in connection with a shooting outside the Sacramento County Main Jail last month that authorities believe was part of a plan to help some inmates escape.

The effort failed. The bullets fired in the Aug. 16 incident didn't penetrate the jail's glass windows, so no inmates escaped.

Sacramento police arrested Rosetta Ivory Rogers, 18, this afternoon in connection with that shooting, said Sgt. Norm Leong.

Rogers was booked into the Sacramento County Main Jail, where she is being held without bail on suspicion of firing at an inhabited dwelling, conspiracy, aiding and abetting a prisoner or escapee, and destroying a jail facility, according to booking records. She also had an outstanding warrant for evading Regional Transit fares, the records show.

Police arrested a first suspect Monday: 20-year-old Jackie Phoulivanh was booked on suspicion of firing into an inhabited dwelling, conspiracy, using a firearm while committing a felony, aiding and abetting, destroying a jail facility and participating in a gang, according to booking records. She was released on bail.

After the shooting, Sacramento County sheriff's officials found evidence inside the jail indicating that at least three inmates had been planning an escape through the window, had the bullets actually broken the glass.

Those inmates remain in custody, sheriff's Sgt. Tim Curran said Wednesday.

Leong declined to say whether police are searching for more suspects in the shooting, adding that the investigation continues.

Bee Staff

Citrus Heights police have arrested a suspect in the burglary of Grand Oaks Elementary School and the burglary of a residence, according to a Police Department news release.

Nolan Kerfeld, 27, photo, was booked into jail on suspicion of burglary and buying or receiving stolen property, records show.

Citrus Heights investigators are studying items found in Kerfeld's residence to see if they are connected to any other burglaries, the release states.

On Monday, officers found that the elementary school had been broken into. The burglar stole electronic and other school equipment, the release states. Investigators also found a "form of identification" at the scene, the release states.

After viewing surveillance camera tapes from the school and conducting follow-up investigation based on the identification recovered at the scene, investigators obtained an arrest warrant for Kerfeld and a search warrant for Kerfeld's residence, the release states

At Kerfeld's residence, officers found property belong to the school and property taken from a burglary in unincorporated Sacramento County, the release states. The victim of the residential burglary identified stolen property found in Kerfeld's residence, the release states.

Bee Staff

Rocklin police arrested two residents who allegedly had stolen funds from a Pittsfield, Mass., bank transferred to their local bank account, according to a Police Department news release.

Arrested were Derek Sherrard, 24, photo left, and Jaymie Sanfilippo, 23, photo right, were arrested on suspicion of burglary and possession of stolen property, the release states.

Pittsfield PD detectives reported that a business there had $28,000 electronically stolen. The releases states that $9,589.23 of that amount ended up the suspects' bank account in Rocklin.

Earlier, Rocklin PD detectives executed a search warrant at a Rocklin bank and the suspects' residence in the 1400 block of Ridgeview Circle, the release states.

The Rocklin PD also advises that to protect your bank accounts from a threat similar to this, you protect or destroying any paperwork that contains any banking information, the release states.

Bee Staff

A 20-year-old Elk Grove man learned that it doesn't pay to lie to a judge, according to a news release from the Placer County District Attorney's Office.

Because of the deceit, Lorenzo Joel Castaneda, photo left, on Wednesday was ordered to do a full nine-month jail sentence by Placer County Superior Court Judge J. Richard Couzens, who had originally planned to allow the defendant to do half his term on the outside by granting him alternative sentencing, the release states.

The case stems from Castaneda's guilty plea to charges of having an unlawful sexual relationship with a minor and sending the 14-year-old girl harmful or obscene photos over a cell phone, the release states. The two had met last year in Roseville.

On July 22, Couzens began to sentence Castaneda to 135 days in jail and grant him eligibility for alternative sentencing on the other 135 days, the release states.

But before Couzens could complete the sentencing, the release states, Castaneda made an unusual request: Could he serve the alternative sentence first before doing the second half in jail?

Castaneda said he was enrolled in 20 units at Cosumnes River College and he wanted to complete the fall semester before having to do the jail time, the release states.

Traditionally, judges order defendants to serve the in-custody portion of their jail time before commencing with alternative sentencing, the release states.

Couzens then continued the sentencing hearing, giving Castaneda several weeks to come back with proof that he was enrolled in 20 units of classes.

In two subsequent appearances before the judge in August, Castaneda furnished a printout sheet of classes and a letter from a counselor, the release states. However, the documents indicated he was enrolled in six units and was on a waiting list for eight other units - far short of the 20 units he had earlier claimed, the release states.

When Castaneda appeared before Couzens on Wednesday, he presented new documents in an attempt to persuade the court that he had 18 units, including classes for which he was on a waiting list, the release states.

Prosecutor Todd Kuhnen of the Placer County District Attorney's Office told the judge it appeared Castaneda had presented manufactured documents to the court, the release states.

"I have a lot of suspicion about this paper trail from your client," the judge told Castaneda's attorney, according to the release. "I do not accept the validity of (Castaneda's) representation."

He then ruled Castaneda ineligible for alternative sentencing, ordered him to serve the full 270 days in the Placer County Jail and placed him on three years probation, the release states.

Bee Staff

Passenger car vs. big rig in a collision is never a fair match for the passenger car, no matter what the circumstances or who is ultimately determined to be at fault.

Ahead of the Labor Day holiday, the Insurance Information Network of California, the California Highway Patrol and the California Trucking Association laid out some safety tips for passenger cars on the road with trucks in a news release.

- Allow plenty of room when changing lanes in front of a truck.

-Pass trucks quickly and don't linger beside a truck.

-Pass a truck on the left, not on the right, because the truck's blind spot on the right runs the length of the trailer and extends out three lanes.

-Allow a lot of room around trucks. Try to leave a 10-car length gap when in front of a truck and 20-25 car lengths when behind a truck.

-Check a truck's mirrors. If you are following a truck and you cannot see the driver's face in the truck's side mirrors, the truck driver cannot see you.

-Allow trucks adequate space to maneuver. Trucks make wide turns at intersections and require additional lanes to turn.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety estimates that 4,602 people died in truck collisions in 2007, the release states. Of these deaths, 16 percent were truck occupants and 70 percent were occupants of cars and other passenger vehicles.

The CHP estimates that more than half of the 7,262 collisions involving big rigs last year were caused by passenger vehicle drivers, the release states.

"The number of trucks using the California highway system will inevitably increase over the coming years," said CHP Deputy Commissioner Skip Carter.

From Bill Lindelof:

Woodland police want help finding two teens suspected of stealing a 1994 flatbed Chevrolet pickup Wednesday night and then leading officers on a vehicle and foot pursuit.

The incident began when Woodland resident Jim Phipps reported his pickup was stolen about 8:30 p.m. Just after midnight, a Woodland police officer with a dog in his squad car spotted the truck near East Street and Gum Avenue near the Yolo County fairgrounds.

The officer activated his overhead lights and pursued the truck at speeds that never exceeded 50 mph before the three occupants of the vehicle, three males in their late teens, bailed out and started to run. The truck continued to roll before crashing into shrubbery in the 1000 block of Fourth Street.

Two suspects ran into a back yard, but the officer was not able to loose his police dog to aid in their capture because of the presence of a pit bull in the yard.

One of the suspects, a 17-year-old, was taken into custody and, after being interviewed at the police station, was released to his aunt with a notice to appear in court. Police are still looking for two other suspects, about 17 or 18 years old.

From Bill Lindelof:

Sacramento State has chosen one of their own to become the university's chief of police.

Lt. Dan Davis (left) has been appointed Sacramento State's top cop and will oversee a staff of 21 sworn officers, five dispatchers, 30 community service officers, eight office staff members and student assistants.

Davis will receive $10,000 per month.

Davis has been a member of the campus police force for eight years after leaving the San Francisco State police force where he worked for 16 years. He also served with the Fremont and BART police forces.

"Dan has the right combination of administrative and law enforcement skills to be successful in the role as chief of police," said Stephen Garcia, Sacramento State's vice president for administration in a press release.

Davis, who replaces Kenneth J. Barnett, who is retiring, was chosen from among five finalists that included Reuben Meeks, chief of the Rancho Cordova Police Department and a captain with the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department; Mark DeRosia, chief of police in Delano; Steve Jaureguy, chief of police and director of public safety at California State University, Stanislaus; and Gregory Harris, chief of police at South Carolina State University in Orangeburg, S.C.

Davis' salary was not immediately available.

Bee Staff

A reward of $1,000 is being offered to help solve a Tahoe City burglary where the thieves wrestled two safes from a secured room at a restaurant, according to a Placer County Sheriff's Department news release.

The thieves struck the burglary occurred at the Bridgetender Bar and Restaurant in on Aug. 16.

Anyone who wishes to remain anonymous and who may have seen security safes either discarded, suspiciously kept in a business or residence, should contact Placer County Crime Stoppers toll-free at (800) 923-8191.

If you have tips or leads related to the Bridgetender burglary, contact either the Sheriff's Office at (530) 581-6300 or Crime Stoppers.

Crime Stoppers pays up to $1,000 for information leading to an arrest or arrests in this case.

From Bill Lindleof

Three large marijuana plants were found in a Rocklin home after firefighters extinguished a blaze at the residence Wednesday morning.

During an investigation of the early morning fire in the 2900 block of Twin Creeks Lane, a Rocklin Fire Department Arson investigator found the plants, according to a Police Department news release.

A resident of the home, Joel Klingenberg, 24, told officers he was responsible for the marijuana, police said. Police said it appears that the marijuana was for personal use and not for sale.

A small amount of dried marijuana was allegedly found in Klingenberg's vehicle, police said. Klingenberg was arrested on suspicion of cultivation and transportation of marijuana, the release states.

A 49-year-old woman died this afternoon after being struck by a Greyhound bus pulling out of the downtown station, Sacramento police say.

Authorities say the collision appears to be an accident and the bus driver has not been arrested.

As officers continue their investigation, they have closed L Street in front of the bus station, between 7th and 8th streets, said police spokeswoman Officer Laura Peck. Westbound L Street traffic is being diverted northbound on 8th Street, and northbound traffic on 8th Street south of Capitol Avenue is being diverted onto Capitol, Peck said.

L Street remains open west of 7th Street.

The Greyhound station is receiving buses, but the road closure is preventing buses from leaving, said Sgt. Norm Leong, another police spokesman.

The closures are expected to remain in effect another one to two hours, Leong said.

Peck said the woman, who has not been identified, was crossing L Street mid-block, not within a cross walk. As the bus driver pulled onto L Street, his view of the pedestrian was blocked by another car, the driver and witnesses told police.

As that car moved, the bus struck the pedestrian. She was transported to UC Davis Medical Center, where she died shortly after 1:15 p.m.

There is no evidence that alcohol or drugs played a role in the collision, nor is there evidence of any wrongdoing by the driver, Peck said.

At this point, it appears to be "a tragic accident," she said.

From Andy Furillo

Convicted murderer Bennett Louis Kovac has been sentenced to 25 years to life in prison for the shooting death of Gary R. Brooks three years ago in a south Sacramento electronics shop.

Sacramento Superior Court Judge Gary S. Mullen imposed the term on Kovac last Friday.

Kovac, 45, was convicted in July in a retrial. A co-defendant who was convicted in the first trial, Wayne Albert Caskey, also received a 25-to-life term.

From Bill Lindelof

A shotgun, ammunition, uniforms and a laptop computer belonging to an employee of the state Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement was taken in a break-in of a state vehicle this morning in Davis, police said.

The equipment was in an unmarked sport utility vehicle parked in the driveway of the employee's home in northeast Davis, said Lt. Tom Waltz, public information officer with the Davis Police Department.

The incident occurred about 4 a.m. and was witnessed by a neighbor, but the burglar got away.

Details of how the suspect got into the SUV were not available but the vehicle was locked, said Waltz. A dark vehicle was seen leaving the area by the witness.

The bureau targets drug dealers, violent career criminals and illegal drug manufacturers. Comment from the bureau was not immediately available.

From Bill Lindelof:

Sacramento police used a fire extinguisher and pepper spray to help capture pit bulls that were suspected of hurting cats in the Hagginwood neighborhood.

Citizens reported that two pit bulls escaped from a yard and were running loose near Del Paso Boulevard and Kathleen Avenue on Tuesday morning. Initial reports were that the dogs had bitten a child, police said, though those reports later were found to be inaccurate.

Police corralled the dogs in a residential yard until animal control officers arrived. At one point, the dogs tried to escape by running toward the front of the yard, but officers discharging a fire extinguisher toward the dogs, forcing them back. The officers also used pepper spray to quiet the animals until they could be captured by animal control.

"However, it was found that the dogs had mauled some cats in the neighborhood," police spokesman Officer Konrad Von Schoech said.

Bee Staff

To head off an annual problem, Roseville police are warning dove hunters to be mindful of the city's limits.

California's two-week dove hunting season opened Sept 1.

Roseville's Municipal Code prohibits discharging any kind of firearm within the city - including shotguns, rifles, handguns, bb and pellet guns, according to a news release from the Police Department. Other types of projectile weapons, such as bows and arrows and slingshots, are also prohibited, except at designated hunting clubs.

Police Chief Mike Blair said: "Back in the 'old days', when large parts of Roseville consisted of open grassland, there were probably areas where people could hunt or target-practice and not bother anyone," the release states. "Today we have businesses, parks and residential neighborhoods close to open space areas, and it's important that hunters respect the law and refrain from shooting within the city."

A map of Roseville showing the city boundaries is available on the city's website at http://www.roseville.ca.us/civica/filebank/blobdload.asp?BlobID=5382.

To report illegal hunting or other shooting in Roseville, call Roseville Police Dispatch at (916) 774-5000. To report unsafe hunting activity (such as shooting too close to occupied areas) in unincorporated areas of Placer County, call the Placer County Sheriff's Department at (530) 886-5375.

From Kim Minugh:

Sacramento police on Monday arrested a 20-year-old woman in connection with a shooting outside the Sacramento County Main Jail last month that authorities say likely was part of an escape plan by some inmates.

Jackie Phoulivanh was booked into the jail on suspicion of firing into an inhabited dwelling, conspiracy, using a firearm while committing a felony, aiding and abetting, destroying a jail facility and participating in a gang, according to booking records.

Police spokesman Officer Konrad Von Schoech said Phoulivanh's arrest stemmed from an Aug. 16 incident in which shots were fired at the jail windows from a car driving past the I Street facility.

The bullets did not penetrate the glass, and no one was injured in the shooting.

Inside the jail, authorities found evidence suggesting that inmates might have been planning to escape through the broken glass, had the windows actually been broken, said Sacramento County sheriff's Sgt. Tim Curran.

The Sacramento police and sheriff's departments each began their own investigations, with police detectives investigating the shooting and sheriff's detectives looking at the alleged escape plan hatched within the facility, which is run by the sheriff's department.

Curran said at least three inmates are believed to have been part of the plan. They remain in custody on unrelated charges, and face additional charges in connection with the attempted escape once the investigation is complete, Curran said.

Von Schoech said the police department's investigation also is ongoing and declined to say whether there are other suspects in the shooting.

Bee Staff:

Cops on bicycles seem out-horsepowered on streets dominated by vehicles but statistics show they can be effective crimefighters as two California Highway Patrol officers recently showed.

CHP Officers Bryan Schneider and David Bowers were gliding through Capitol Park about 8 p.m. Sunday when they detected the odor of burning marijuana. They surprised two teens smoking the weed near the fish pond.

Identity checks revealed Konrad Casebeer (left photo), 18, of Klamath Falls, Ore., and a 17-year-old juvenile were wanted in connection with a homicide in that city.

Casebeer is a suspect in the shooting death of 18-year-old Antelmo Herrera-Jimenez on Friday in a garden outside a home, according to an Associated Press story. He died from a single gunshot wound to the chest, the story said.

District Attorney Ed Caleb of Klamath County said Casebeer is charged with murder, according to the AP story. He said the juvenile was taken into custody for violating terms of his probation, but the he said additional charges are likely against the 17-year-old.

From Kim Minugh and Chelsea Phua:

Sacramento police are calling this afternoon's fatal house fire in Hollywood Park an "unfortunate accident" rather than a crime, according to authorities.

The investigation into the circumstances leading up to the fire ion the 2100 block of Shielah Way continues, but there are no indications of foul play, said Officer Konrad Von Schoech, police spokesman.

In what appears to be a bizarre coincidence, Von Schoech said neighbors called police to the home about 11:30 a.m. because a man and a woman were arguing in the street.

Officers contacted the man and the woman, in her mid 80s, but found no basis for any legal action, Von Schoech said. Instead, the two roommates - who share no familial or amorous relationship - agreed to separate.

The man went to a work shed in the backyard and the woman to a neighbor's house, Von Schoech said.

Less than two hours later, Sacramento city firefighters responded to a fire at the home, said Capt. Jim Doucette, department spokesman.

The blaze appears to have begun in a detached garage in the back of the house, and was spreading to the main house's attic when firefighters arrived, Doucette said.

As they put out the fire, firefighters discovered an adult man's body in or near the garage, Doucette said. Sacramento County Coroner's officials later identified the man as Jules A. Arnould, 69, of Sacramento.

Von Schoech said the dead man is believed to be the man contacted by police earlier in the day.

From Bill Lindelof

An investigator for the Yolo County District Attorney's office has resigned his position and retracted comments he made about his boss - District Attorney Jeff Reisig, according to a news release from the DA's office.

Reisig announced Tuesday that investigator Rick Gore had resigned his job with the district attorney's office. The resignation stems from a posting on The People's Vanguard of Davis blog of Gore's March 5, 2008 letter in which he made allegations of unethical practices and a hostile work environment in the district attorney's office, the release states.

Reisig denied the Gore's statements and on May 21, 2008, Yolo County released findings of an investigation in which it was determined that the allegations in Gore's letter were unsubstantiated, the release states.

In his retraction letter dated Monday and provided to The Bee by the DA's office, Gore apologizes to Reisig and the entire Yolo County District Attorney's office. He also retracts 12 allegations that he said are unfounded.

Among the retractions: "I was never ordered by DA Jeff Reisig to sign an untrue affidavit in support of a gang injunction. The allegation is unfounded and I retract it."

He also retracted an allegation that Reisig tried to hide evidence during a murder trial.

From Andy Furillo:

Accused murderer Daniel Alan Russell took the witness stand in his own defense today and tried to throw responsibility for the beating death of a 90-year-old woman three years ago onto his half-brother.

Russell, 19, testified that he lent the shoes that criminalists have linked to the murder scene to Steven Bedal, a half-brother of the defendant. According to court documents, Bedal told police shortly after the April 15, 2006, homicide of Marie Oliver on Ellen Street in North Sacramento that Russell and his co-defendant, Calvin Eugene Pearson, also 19, told him the day of the killing that they planned to rob the woman. Russell and Pearson have separate juries.

In his Sacramento Superior Court testimony today, Russell said Bedal had been living at times "on the street" and that he "wasn't doing financially well" when he approached him the day Oliver was killed on the Saturday before Easter.

"He asked me for some clothes," Russell testified.

Russell said he lent Bedal a sweater, some blue jeans, and a pair of basketball shoes. Criminalists said they lifted treads similar to those shoes from the crime scene, and that they also found the victim's blood on the same footwear.

Bedal gave the clothing back to him "before dawn on Sunday."

Bedal has not testified in the case.

Prosecutors say Russell and Pearson beat Oliver to death during the course of a robbery and burglary of the woman's home. Besides the forensic evidence, Deputy District Attorney Kevin Greene also presented videotape to Pearson's jury where the two defendants described to investigators how they killed Oliver.

Russell's jury did not hear the statements, but did view a portion of the videotape where Russell and Pearson discussed what the consequences might be for the crime. Russell told Pearson in that portion of the tape, "We should have been smarter about it."

Russell testified today that he and a person he did not identify went to Oliver's house the Tuesday before the homicide with the intent to burglarize it. He said that the two of them left after they couldn't get inside the residence. He said they decided that "for us to do this was not the right thing, and it felt bad, so we left."

He told the two juries that he met Oliver the previous year and cut her grass about four or five times. His face reddened and he sniffled slightly on the stand when Russell testified that on the days he and a friend worked in her yard, "Miss Oliver offered me and my friend something to drink, and she allowed me to use the restroom."

"She was nice," Russell said.