Sacto 9-1-1

The Woodland Police Department arrested a man Saturday following a reported attempted robbery in a Wal-Mart parking lot.

Police booked an Ohio man, 38-year-old John Smith, at the Yolo County Jail on several charges, including suspicion of attempted robbery and driving a stolen vehicle.

About 9 a.m., bystanders reported that a woman was lying on the ground in the parking lot at 1720 E. Main St. after Smith had tried to steal her purse, according to a department news release.

The Yolo County Coroner's Office has identified the three men killed Friday morning in a crash on Interstate 80 in Davis.

They were identified on Saturday as Darius Austin Powe-Reed, 20, Zan Djavan Lockhart, 20, and Lavell Elmore, 30, said Robert LaBrash, Yolo County chief deputy coroner.

Powe-Reed and Lockhart were from Sacramento. Elmore was from Elk Grove.

California Highway Patrol spokesman Officer Bryan Konvalin said the crash occurred about 10:25 a.m. just east of the Richards Boulevard offramp.

A man is receiving medical attention after being removed from the American River at River Bend Park in Rancho Cordova this afternoon.

At 4:41 p.m., the Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District received a report that a man had jumped from a raft into the river and had not surfaced.

A fire boat found the man, who had been caught in a fast-moving current, tangled in submerged trees, said Battalion Chief Kyle Johnson.

Crews took him from the water about 5:20 p.m. after he had been underwater for at least 40 minutes, and administered CPR, Johnson said. The man was transported to the UC Davis Medical Center.

No details about his conditions are currently available.

A River Park fireworks booth was held up late Friday, as volunteers were about to close up for the night, Sacramento police reported.

A suspect approached the volunteers around 10:30 p.m. and robbed them at gunpoint.

The suspect was described as an African American male, 25 to 30 years old, 6 feet 5 inches tall, with a thin build.

The suspect fled on foot and no one was injured.

Sacramento police arrested a man Friday, after he and an acquaintance showed up at the hospital with gunshot wounds.

Police were called to UC Davis Medical Center around 3:30 p.m. after the two men showed up with non-life threatening wounds.

Police say Gregory Carlton Walker, 53, made an illegal, homemade gun and shot himself and his acquaintance.

Walker has been jailed, with bail set at $60,000.

Bee reporters answer questions about area crime news, trends and other issues.

QUESTION: In the early 2000s, a young man was murdered outside a convenience store. I was the jury foreman. He was shot by a Southern California gang member. Can you tell me the situation of the defendant?
Submitted by: James, Reno

ANSWER: Jamar Floyd Sandley was convicted of second-degree murder in the shooting death of 22-year-old Sammy Russell Pasioles.

Sandley was sentenced in April 2002 to 25 years to life in prison. Now 30 years old, he is incarcerated at California State Prison, Solano.

According to stories in The Bee, Pasioles was shot at 11:45 p.m. May 2, 2001, near a service station in the 4900 block of 47th Avenue. Sacramento County Sheriff's officials said he also had been beaten in the face.

Sandley, then 18, was arrested at a motel near Interstate 80 and Madison Avenue. Authorities said the shooting was motivated by a prior dispute.

The California Highway Patrol will conduct a sobriety checkpoint tonight at 47th Avenue and Steiner Drive in the south area of Sacramento County.

The checkpoint will begin operations about 9 p.m. and continue for about five hours.

CHP officers will control traffic at the intersection to evaluate the sobriety of drivers passing through the checkpoint and hand out literature warning of the dangers of drinking and driving.

Davis police are investigating a report that two people tried to lure and 11-year-old boy into a van.

Shortly after 1 p.m. Thursday, officers were dispatched to Halcon Place in northeast Davis regarding a report of suspicious circumstances. An 11-year-old boy told a neighbor that two people he did not know pulled up in a green Ford van and asked him to get inside, according to a Police Department news release. The boy refused and rode off on his bicycle.

The van followed the boy for a short distance before leaving the area.

A 68-year-old man who stalked his neighbors has been sentenced to seven years in prison.

James O'Rourke was convicted by a Sacramento County jury June 8 of felony stalking, while having prior felony convictions, and a misdemeanor charge of willful disobedience of a court order. He was sentenced by Sacramento Superior Court Judge Eugene Balonon.

In 2006, O'Rourke was convicted of stalking a young couple who lived across the street from his house on 40th Street in Sacramento. When he got out of prison in 2009, he moved back into the same house and continued to harass and follow the same victims until the summer of 2011, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release.

The Sacramento County District Attorney's Office today announced the conviction or sentencing of three men in separate cases involving sexual abuse of children.

Larry Paul Gregory, 68, who was convicted by a jury last month of eight counts of child sexual abuse, has been sentenced to 600 years to life in prison. Gregory's previous felony convictions involving child sexual abuse made him subject to sentencing enhancements, officials said. He was sentenced by Superior Court Judge Lloyd Connelly.

Gregory was considered a good friend of the 5-year-old victim and her family. In the months leading up to the assaults in 2009, Gregory inappropriately exposed himself to the victim on several occasions while playing soccer and swimming with her in the backyard. He also sexually assaulted the youngster in her bedroom and living room, according to a District Attorney's Office news release.

Family and friends of a missing 19-year-old woman have updated their description of the clothes she was last seen wearing.

Linnea Lomax, a Placerville teen who has been missing in Sacramento County since Tuesday, was wearing a black sweatshirt with "Sweden" written in red on the front and green pants, her family said. She was wearing flip-flops.

She is described as 5-feet, 2-inches tall and weighing 100 pounds. She has long, curly blonde hair, blue eyes and a fair complexion.

Acquaintances said Lomax suffered a breakdown while studying for finals at the University of California, Davis, where she is a freshman. She received in-patient treatment at a facility for 10 days, but disappeared in the middle of her first day of out-patient treatment.

Three people died this morning in a collision on eastbound Interstate 80 in Davis.

California Highway Patrol spokesman Officer Bryan Konvalin said the crash occurred about 10:25 a.m. on eastbound I-80 just east of the Richards Boulevard offramp.

A Mitsubishi Montero SUV was traveling eastbound in the No. 2, or center lane, when a Budget rental box truck traveling in the lane to the right of the Montero attempted to merge to the left. Konvalin said the box truck collided with the Montero, then veered to the right and ran off the roadway where it struck a tree.

A Learjet thought to have been having an in-flight emergency has safely landed at Mather Field, according to radio traffic.

Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District crews were standing by at Mather Field after the jet was apparently reporting a "major in-flight emergency." The plane was "dumping fuel" and was awaiting clearance to land for an in-flight emergency, said Assistant Chief Walt White earlier today.

But officials at the field's tower later reported there was no emergency, and the jet has since landed safely on the ground.

According to Sac Metro Fire radio traffic, the pilot reported no on-board medical emergency or any other kind of emergency.

By Denny Walsh

dwalsh@sacbee.com

Johnny E. "Jay" Grivette Jr., once a top lieutenant of Lawrence Leland "Lee" Loomis, alleged by the government to be a major fraudster who has yet to be charged, was sentenced Friday in Sacramento federal court to 4 1/2 months in prison and 4 1/2 months of home confinement on his guilty plea to a marijuana-growing conspiracy.

Grivette, 37, a Butte County resident, will remain free for at least the next three months while he continues his assistance in the government's investigation of Loomis, formerly of Granite Bay.

Bee reporters answer questions about area crime news, trends and other issues.

QUESTION: In 1995, some students from my high school, Del Campo, were involved in a car accident, I believe in Folsom. As I recall, one student died soon after from her injuries and one was critically injured. What were the details of the accident?
Submitted by: Anonymous, Carmichael

ANSWER: Six Del Campo High School students were returning from a trip to a coffee shop about 11 p.m. March 18, 1995, when the Ford Bronco they were riding in swerved off Greenback Lane in Folsom and flipped over at least twice.

A federal grand jury in Sacramento has indicted four men -- from Rancho Cordova, Sacramento, Folsom and Oroville -- charging them with attempting to entice a minor to engage in prohibited sexual conduct.

The men were identified while they were online seeking to have sex with minors, according to a federal Department of Justice news release. In each case, the men allegedly traveled to meet a fictional minor and were met instead by law enforcement officers.

Brandon Marks, 25, of Rancho Cordova was indicted June 21 and charged with attempted enticement of a minor, as well as two counts of receipt and two counts of distribution of child pornography. Nicholas Perry, 34, of Sacramento and Eric Johnston, 21, of Folsom were indicted today and charged with a single count of attempted enticement of a minor.

A federal grand jury today indicted two Sacramento men in the attempted robbery of an armored car April in south Sacramento County.

Raymell Lamar Eason, 42, and Keith Lamont Smith, 36, were indicted for interference with commerce by robbery, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

According to court documents, on April 17, Eason and Smith, armed with an activated Taser gun, parked in a Walmart parking lot on Florin Road. The two men allegedly were waiting for a Garda Logistics Services armored car, which they planned to rob when the guard left the store with its currency deposits.

A task force made of of Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District arson investigators and Sacramento County sheriff's deputies have announced a second arrest in a campaign targeting the possession and sale of illegal fireworks.

Tips from concerned citizens led to the arrest of 22-year-old Michael Jones about 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, according to a fire district news release. Officials said he was cited for possessing illegal fireworks in the Foothill Farms area, near Hillsdale Boulevard and Walerga Road. Officials said Jones had thousands of fireworks in his possession, including firecrackers, Roman candles, mortar-type aerial fireworks, M180s and bottle rockets, all of which were confiscated.

A 31-year-old man was arrested by the task force Tuesday night in a theater parking lot on Greenback Lane near Interstate 80 on suspicion of selling illegal fireworks. Jimmy Nguyen is accused of advertising the fireworks on Craigslist and then setting up a meeting spot for the sale. In addition to fireworks confiscated from Nguyen's car, fire officials said about 45 pounds of illegal fireworks were found at his residence.

Metro Fire officials said investigators will follow up on all tips received on the department's arson hotline. They urge people with information that would assist in preventing the use and sale of illegal fireworks to call the hotline at (916) 859-3775.

Marcus Jamal Davis, who was convicted of fatally shooting a man outside an IHOP restaurant in North Natomas, was sentenced today to 50 years to life in prison.

Davis, now, 27, was convicted by a Sacramento County jury last month of first-degree murder in the death of Chester Jackson, 27. The jury also found true that Davis personally used a firearm, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release. He was sentenced by Sacramento Superior Court Judge Eugene Balonon.

In the early morning of Feb. 20, 2011, Jackson and his friends were at the Natomas IHOP restaurant. Davis also was there and had been drinking. Prosecutors said Davis provoked a confrontation with Jackson in front of the restaurant, then shot Jackson eight times.

The jury last month exonerated Davis' co-defendant, Robert Earl Lucas, 31, of murder charges in the same killing. Lucas testified that he only played peacemaker when Davis got into an argument with Jackson.

Friends and family of a missing 19-year-old Placerville woman they say is off her psychiatric medications, scared and without a phone or wallet are asking for the public's help in finding her.

They said the women, Linnea Lomax, pictured at left, does not want to be found and ask that anyone who sees her not talk to her, but instead contact the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department.

Lomax, a University of California, Davis, freshman studying biology, was last seen Tuesday afternoon at an out-patient facility on Howe Avenue. She left on her own will, said Julie Warren, a friend of the Lomax family.

Placer, Yuba and Nevada county residents should not worry if they see raging orange flames and plumes of smoke today as a prescribed burn that started at 10 a.m. continues through the evening.

The burn is occurring underneath the Middle Fork American River Canyon bridge, about a mile northeast of Auburn. The Lake Clementine Trail is also closed as part of the burn.

Smoke will be visible from Interstate 80, Highway 49, Auburn, Foresthill and the surrounding areas, according to Cal Fire.

About 75 game birds that appear to have been bred for cockfighting were discovered by El Dorado County Animal Services and the El Dorado County Sheriff's Office at a Shingle Springs residence Tuesday.

Cockfighting is illegal throughout the country and California arrests can lead to jail time and fines up to $5,000 for a first offense and $25,000 for a second offense.

After a member of the public tipped them off about the possibility of a breeding ring, animal services and the sheriff's officials obtained a search warrant and investigated the property, where they found game birds with signs of cockfighting activity. They removed all of them.

An asphalt oil spill is blocking traffic and dirtying vehicles on westbound I80 east of Raley Boulevard.

California Highway Patrol is reporting that a truck lost a load of asphalt oil in the slow lane of the roadway. CHP is currently on the scene.

One truck that drove through the area ended up being covered in oil, the CHP report notes.

Caltrans has been notified and should be arriving soon, according to the CHP report.

California Highway Patrol found a vehicle lodged between two trees off the road on Eastbound I-80 near Gold Run Avenue, the result of a crash that killed one person early this morning.

California Highway Patrol Officer Jason Gonzalez said around 3:07 a.m., a brown vehicle with major damage was discovered stuck between two trees. One passenger was confirmed dead around 3:58 a.m, Gonzalez said.

The driver of the vehicle was taken from the car, but Gonzalez said they are unsure at this time if there were other passengers.

CHP has been on the scene for more than two hours now, he said. Since the vehicle is off the road, it isn't blocking traffic.

Bee reporters answer questions about area crime news, trends and other issues.

QUESTION: In mid-August 2001, there was a crime event in Sacramento that made national news. I was in New York and heard about it, but a few weeks later, Sept. 11 happened and pushed it out of the news. What were the circumstances?
Submitted by: Anonymous, Sacramento

ANSWER: You likely are referring to the bloody rampage by Nikolay Soltys, who killed six family members, including his pregnant wife and 3-year-old son, Aug. 20, 2001.

A 31-year-old man was arrested Tuesday night in a theater parking lot where he was allegedly selling illegal fireworks.

Jimmy Nguyen was taken into custody by arson investigators with the Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District and the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department. He was arrested on suspicion of possession and sale of illegal fireworks.

Sacramento Metro Assistant Chief Walt White said Nguyen is accused of advertising the fireworks on Craigslist, then setting up a meeting spot for the sale. He was arrested about 8 p.m. Tuesday in the parking lot of the Century Theaters on Greenback Lane near Interstate 80. In addition to fireworks confiscated from Nguyen's car, White said about 45 pounds of illegal fireworks were found at the man's residence.

Citrus Heights police seek to identify the suspect (pictured) in an armed robbery that occurred this afternoon at the Bank of the West.

Police were called to the bank at 7381 Greenback Lane shortly before 3:30 p.m. They were told that a man entered the bank and approached a teller. He brandished a firearm and demanded cash. After receiving an undisclosed amount of money, he left on foot and was last seen heading north toward Sylvan Road, according to a Police Department news release.

The man was described as 30 to 35 years old, with a medium build and a small tattoo on his neck. He was last seen wearing a white T-shirt with green and black writing on it and a long -sleeve white undershirt with black designs on both sleeves. He was reportedly wearing a black beret-style hat.

The Yolo County District Attorney's Office is alerting residents to a surge in scams targeting older adults in the county.

Reports from victims in West Sacramento, Davis and Woodland indicate that phony sweepstakes and the "Grandma, It's Me" telephone scams are continuing to be used to trick people into wiring money outside the country, according to a District Attorney's Office news release.

In one instance, more than $4,000 was lost in a phony sweepstakes scam after a con artist pretending to be from the Federal Trade Commission persuaded a local senior citizen to wire money to Costa Rica, officials said. In another recent case, an elderly woman was tricked into sending all the money she had in her savings account to someone claiming to be her grandson who was out of the country and in trouble. She believed him and sent the money in an effort to help.

Two Castro Valley men are in custody after the stolen car they were riding in rammed two patrol cars in the Auburn area Tuesday afternoon.

Placer County sheriff's deputies were following a Honda on Galena Drive in the north Auburn area after checking the license plate number and learning the car had been reported stolen from Penryn, according to a Sheriff's Department news release.

The car turned onto Town Court, near Sutter Auburn Faith Hospital, then swerved into the opposing lane and struck the patrol car head-on, officials said. The driver, later identified as Joseph L. Engel, 21, (left photo) then allegedly backed up and rammed another patrol car. Authorities said two detectives' vehicles also were damaged.

Daniel Horton, formerly a juvenile court dependency referee, pleaded no contest today to sexually motivated child annoyance of a woman he thought to be younger than 18, but who was an adult.

Horton's sentencing, delivered by Judge Richard Couzens, forces him to register as a sex offender for life, according to the Sacramento County District Attorney's Office. He also must spend three years on probation, 90 days in custody and complete a sex offender management program.

His time in custody can be served by house arrest with a GPS ankle monitor or by work project.

A third party dug into a four-inch PG&E gas line on Eureka Road in Roseville this morning around 8:20 a.m., causing the street to close westbound between Rocky Ridge and North Sunrise Avenue.

PG&E Spokeswoman Brandi Ehlers said they shut off the gas flow and are currently repairing the line. She predicted the road would be closed for at least two more hours.

"We'd appreciate people just staying out of the area, because if the wind changes we may close some additional roads," said Roseville Fire Department Assistant Chief Jeff Carman.

After undergoing jaw surgery Tuesday, Sacramento police dog Bodie will be released from the VCA around 1:30 p.m. today.

The German Shepherd's surgery involved installing a metal cleat in his jaw, along with drawing bone marrow from his shoulder and inserting it into his jaw for bone regeneration, the Sacramento Police Department said.

A Sacramento woman has gone missing, the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department said.

Linnea Lomax, 19, was last seen at a business on the 800th block of Howe Avenue around 1 p.m. Tuesday, according to the sheriff's department.

The sheriff's department describes Lomax as a 5-foot-2, white female, with blonde hair and blue eyes, and weighing 100 pounds. She was last seen wearing green pants and a dark blue hooded sweatshirt.

Bee reporters answer questions about area crime news, trends and other issues.

QUESTION: What happened to the loan scandal involving Christopher Warren and company?
Submitted by: Alice, Sacramento

ANSWER: Christopher Jared Warren pleaded guilty in federal court in January to identity theft and wire fraud related to cheating lenders out of $19 million.

According to federal court online records, his sentencing, initially scheduled for April 24, is now set for Aug. 7.

As Independence Day approaches, state fire officials remind residents and visitors to El Dorado and Amador counties of fireworks restrictions.

Because of the risk of wildfires, an El Dorado County ordinance prohibits the use and possession of fireworks, including the "safe and sane" fireworks commonly sold in surrounding areas including Sacramento County.

The California State Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, local fire agencies and law enforcement take the prohibition of fireworks seriously, said Chief Kelly Keenan of Cal Fire's Amador-El Dorado Unit. Anyone caught with fireworks in El Dorado County will have their fireworks confiscated. They also could be cited and face misdemeanor charges that include up to six months in jail, a $500 fine or both.

By Sam Stanton
sstanton@sacbee.com

Responding to a lawsuit filed by The Bee and the Los Angeles Times, a judge ruled today that the names of police officers involved in last November's pepper spray incident at UC Davis must be made public.

The order by Alameda Superior Court Judge Evelio Grillo reverses an earlier decision by the judge to allow release of a report into the incident with the names of the officers redacted.

The Federated University Police Officers Association -- the union representing campus police officers -- has been fighting disclosure of the officers' names, arguing that state law prohibits it and that revealing their identities could expose them to harrassment.

A suspension on residential burn permits in Placer, Sierra, Nevada and Yuba counties will become effective July 2 as summer heat grows stronger, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

Once the suspension is effective, Cal Fire will deem any fire or smoke that's reported as a wildfire and will treat it with a full suppression response. Anyone who breaks the suspension will be subjected to "appropriate" civil or criminal action and could become responsible for paying the cost of the fire suppression response, according to Cal Fire.

The suspension happens annually at the beginning of July.

Bodie, the Sacramento police dog shot during a police chase last month, is recovering from jaw surgery.

Police spokeswoman Michele Gigante said the three-hour surgery this afternoon at VCA Sacramento Veterinary Referral Center went well.

Surgeons installed a metal cleat in the German shepherd's jaw. Bone marrow also was taken from Bodie's shoulder and packed into the broken jaw to aid in bone regeneration, she said.

The dog is expected to be hospitalized for at least another day.

Bodie was shot twice through his left jaw and once in his paw. His medical bills have been offset by numerous donations, which totaled $20,000 as of May 26.

A man was shot on Mack Road and Archean Way on Monday when he and two others walked past another man on the street, according to the Sacramento Police Department.

Once the three people walked past the suspect, they turned around and heard shots being fired at them. The suspect shot one man in the upper body, and Sacramento police reported the victim is expected to survive.

The male suspect slid into what police described as a dark, four-door newer vehicle and fled. The investigation is still in progress, according to the police.

An pickup truck overturned around 6:30 this morning and landed in the center divide on southbound I5, just north of state route 12 and Lodi, according to California Highway Patrol.

CHP Officer Jason Gonzalez said the driver was still in the truck when the incident happened, but the report did not identify any serious injuries.

The crash is causing a slowdown since it's in the center divide and two units are still responding, Gonzalez said.

A vehicle collided with a bicyclist and then fled at Dana Drive and Bradford Way's intersection Monday night at 9:06 p.m.

Witnesses described the vehicle as a white sedan that looked similar to a Ford Mustang, according to the Redding Police Department.

The victim in the crash, a 21-year-old Redding man, suffered a laceration to his forehead, hand abrasions and pain in his neck and left ankle. He was being treated in the hospital for his injuries as of last night.

Police are requesting that anyone who can help identify the suspect call the Redding Police Department at (530) 225-4200.

Bee reporters answer questions about area crime news, trends and other issues.

QUESTION: In December 2011 Thomas Tanke was found to be guilty of embezzlement. I have found no updates on the case. What, if any, was the outcome for conviction, time served, etc.?
Submitted by: Cindy, Sacramento

ANSWER: Thomas Tanke, the former vice president of a Rancho Cordova construction company, was found guilty in federal court in November of stealing more than $110,000 from the firm.

A jury found Tanke guilty on two counts of mail fraud and five counts of bank fraud.

Tanke initially was to be sentenced March 2, but according to online court records, the sentencing hearing has been postponed to July 6. He's being held in Sacramento County Jail.

According to a story in The Bee, Tanke, 68, claimed that at least part of the money was compensation in lieu of a higher salary, but the owner of Azteca Construction Inc., Rafael Martin, said that was not true.

According to a trial brief filed by the prosecutor, between February and June 2004, Tanke diverted seven checks to his own business bank account even though they were issued by third-party purchasers of equipment and were payable to Azteca, Martin or Construction Equipment Rental & Services, an entity owned by Martin's wife that leased equipment to Azteca.

Tanke also caused approximately 23 Azteca checks to be issued as payments to his personal creditors, and in some instances submitted invoices to suggest that the payments were for legitimate company expenses, according to the brief.

He was accused of using company checks to pay for items including jewelry and an expensive bicycle.

A 32-year-old man was arrested in the parking lot of a Citrus Heights store Friday night after he allegedly tried to strangle an infant during an argument with his estranged wife.

Daniel Graf (pictured) met his estranged wife in the Walmart parking lot at 7010 Auburn Blvd. shortly before 9 p.m. Friday. They met so that he could visit their 3-month-old infant, but during the visit the couple argued over child custody arrangements and Graf's wife called police, according to a Citrus Heights Police Department news release.

When officers arrived, they began to speak with Graf as he held the infant in his arms. During the conversation, Graf became angry and told the officers that he was going to kill the child, officials said. He allegedly began to choke the infant with his hands.

By David Ruiz

druiz@sacbee.com

Local law and fire departments today reminded Sacramento county residents about the "Zero Tolerance" policy against the purchase, sale, use and possession of illegal fireworks.

At a press conference, State fire marshal Tonya Hoover said violators of the policy will be prosecuted and held accountable for the cost of any fire damage caused by illegal fireworks. "We want everyone to be safe and responsible," she said.

The easiest way to prevent fireworks-related fires, Hoover said, is to buy only "Safe and Sane" fireworks -- those that display the state fire marshal seal of approval on the packaging. Fireworks that explode, leave the ground, or move around the ground uncontrollably are always considered illegal by the state fire marshal.

Fireworks went on sale June 28 and will continue until July 6 at noon.

The Mariposa County homicide suspect found dead in a Folsom park Sunday was the husband of the slain woman, authorities confirmed today.

The Mariposa County Sheriff's Department also confirmed that it appears 21-year-old Sean M. Russell had committed suicide before his body was found in Negro Bar section of the Folsom Lake State Recreation Area.

After investigating the Friday killing of Tiffany Russell, 21, Mariposa County investigators obtained an arrest warrant for Sean Russell and alerted law enforcement agencies to be on the lookout for him and his vehicle.

A California State Park ranger spotted Sean Russell's Ford Ranger pickup in a Negro Bar parking lot Sunday, setting into motion a four-hour manhunt that closed the park and brought out two police SWAT teams.

They eventually found Sean Russell's body near a Negro Bar trail with a gun underneath.

Tiffany Russell's brother told The Bee on Sunday that the couple's marriage was troubled and that her family had tried to persuade her to move from Orangevale back to her hometown of Merced for a fresh start, but to no avail.

A Sacramento County sheriff's deputy has pleaded no contest to felony drug possession and identity theft charges after she befriended an elderly victim and refilled his prescription drugs without his knowledge, according to authorities.

Kelly Curran Smith, 43, entered the plea today as part of an agreement with the Sacramento County District Attorney's office that will send her to jail for 120 days and to a drug diversion program, according to a news release from the DA's office. She also will be placed on probation after she has served her time.

Smith and her attorney, Jeffrey M. Schaff, declined comment.

Smith is a 23-year veteran deputy assigned to the Rancho Cordova Police Department. Smith was placed on paid administrative leave when the investigation began in March, and she remains employed by the department, said sheriff's Deputy Jason Ramos.

Smith befriended a 90-year-old man and then began to refill his prescription painkillers without his knowledge. She then picked up the pills and kept them for her own use. She was arrested in May.

Smith will be sentenced Aug. 6.

By Sam Stanton
sstanton@sacbee.com

The suspect in an international drug ring conspiracy made a brief appearance in federal court today just before officials were set to describe the three-year probe that led to his arrest.

Shiraz Malik, dressed in an orange Sacramento County jail jumpsuit, looked around occasionally and smiled as he was arraigned and had a not-guilty plea entered on his behalf.

Malik is accused of running a worldwide drug-smuggling scheme that utilized the internet to sell his everything from heroin to oxycontin. If convicted, he could face up to life in prison.

A Dunnigan man was sentenced Friday to spend 653 years to life in prison after being convicted of 41 counts of kidnapping, sex with a child younger than 14, communicating with a minor to commit sex acts and burglary.

Jason Stephen Sigur, 36, met a 13-year-old in a chat room in 2010 and began having sex with her, according to the Yolo County District Attorney's Office. He convinced her to move with him to Dunnigan and the girl's mother reported her missing. Police quickly found her in Sigur's trailer.

Sigur was convicted in April. Yolo County Superior Court judge Steven L. Mock delivered Sigur's sentence June 22.

The Isleton Bridge on State Highway 160 is closed for maintenance starting today through August 24, according to Caltrans.

The Isleton Bridge is one of three Sacramento Delta bridges that are being repainted as part of an $8.4 million project. The other bridges are the Steamboat Slough Bridge and the Paintersville Bridge.

Caltrans is advising people to plan ahead because unexpected weather could affect travel times.

Six children who had been victimized as prostitutes were rescued as part of an FBI and local law enforcement investigation in Sacramento, Chico, Redding and Vallejo that ran through last week.

The number of children recovered is one of the highest in the nation, according to an FBI news release. The investigation also resulted in police arresting six pimps.

Since 2008, teams in the Sacramento Division have recovered 23 children and arrested 18 pimps.

Sacramento Police arrested a copper wire thief on the 2500 block of Traction Avenue over the weekend after a witness alerted them to the crime.

Patrick Hayes, 29, was arrested on 11:55 a.m. Sunday for vandalism, destruction of electrical lines and possession of burglary tools and stolen property. Michele Gigante, Sacramento PD spokeswoman, said police responded to a call about a subject stealing wire from light poles.

Gigante applauded the witness for calling police.

By Dale Kasler
dkasler@sacbee.com

Folsom police said today they've found the corpse of a man believed to be a suspect connected to a homicide in Mariposa County.

The suspect was found dead in the Negro Bar area of Folsom Lake State Recreation Area following a manhunt that forced law enforcement officials to temporarily close the area.

Police said the body hadn't yet been identified, and it wasn't confirmed if the man was connected to the Mariposa case.

The Sacramento County Coroner has identified the man killed Friday after losing control of his motorcylce on Truxel Road at Interstate 80.

Police reports indicate that the man, identified as Anthony Fairamitani, 23, of Sacramento was southbound on Truxel shortly before 9 p.m. when he lost control, hit the median and was thrown into northbound lanes where he was hit by a pickup truck.

Fairamitani was pronounced dead at the scene.

Read an earlier Bee story on the accident.

A motorcyclist was killed this evening after he lost control on the Truxel Road overpass of Interstate 80 in the Natomas area.

Sgt. Matt Young, a spokesman for the Sacramento Police Department, said the crash occurred at 8:52 p.m. A motorcyclist was southbound on Truxel in the left lane. As he went over the overpass, he lost control of the motorcycle, which might have struck the median of the roadway. He was thrown into the left northbound lane, where he was struck by a northbound pickup truck.

The motorcyclist, reported to be in his 20s, was pronounced dead at the scene.

A Sacramento musician determined to track down a distinctive drum and the person who stole it from his home studio earlier this month led today to the arrest of a suspect and recovery of the instrument.

Chris Amato, a local musician and business owner, said he believes the drum was stolen during a residential burglary June 4. Taken was a snare drum that he plays in the City of Sacramento Pipe Band, a bagpipe group that represents Sacramento at events throughout the West Coast. The drum, valued at approximately $1,000, was handmade by a firm in Northern Ireland and is the only one in the region in that particular color, Amato said.

He reported the theft to the Sacramento Police Department but also started his own investigation, contacting area music stores and inquiring whether anyone had attempted to sell the instrument. When he contacted the Guitar Center at Arden Fair, he learned that someone had tried to sell the drum and the store clerk had retained the person's contact information.

The Roseville Police Department seeks to identify possible suspects in the vandalism and burglary of Warren T. Eich Intermediate School.

Police have responded to the campus at 1509 Sierra Gardens Drive six times this month, investigating these crimes as well as trespassing. The vandalism, including broken windows and extensive graffiti, will cost the school district and the city of Roseville more than $18,000 to repair, according to a Police Department news release.

Over the weekend of June 15 to 18, the school was vandalized and burglarized. School security cameras captured two males on the school grounds during the time frame in which the incidents occurred. Police released the still photographs (above) from the footage in the hope that someone in the community will identify the individuals.

A Sacramento police officer's patrol car collided with a motorcycle earlier this afternoon at Marysville Boulevard and North Avenue in Del Paso Heights.

The motorcyclist was transported to a hospital with several broken bones, but did not sustain life-threatening injuries, said Sgt. Matt Young.

Young said the two vehicles collided at 2:54 p.m. when the officer was en route to assist another officer on a call.

The department's traffic investigations unit is conducting an investigation, Young said. He declined to give the name of the motorcyclist or of the officer, who was not injured.

A Rocklin man pleaded guilty today in federal court in Sacramento to possession of child pornography.

According to the plea agreement filed in the case, law enforcement officers in September 2011 identified a computer at the home of Donald G. Callahan, 62, offering child pornography through an Internet file-sharing service. On Oct. 25, agents searched his home and seized his computer and several compact discs.

The computer contained approximately 898 image files and 536 video files showing the sexual exploitation of children, according to a federal Department of Justice news release. On the compact discs were an additional 16 video files.

The age of a baby whose body was found along a street in an undeveloped subdivision in Newcastle on Thursday has been determined by the Placer County coroner to be "near term."

Sheriff's officials said no other information about the infant, including the sex, is being released for investigative reasons.

A woman was walking on Green Hills Court about 4:55 p.m. when she reported to a deputy who happened to be in the area that she had seen a trash bag off the side of the road and that it had a foul odor. The deputy checked the bag and found the body.

By Carlos Alcalá
calcala@sacbee.com

Former Placerville Mayor Dave Machado pleaded guilty today in El Dorado Superior Court to one felony and two misdemeanors in connection with charges related to his property dealings in the city.

Under a plea agreement, Machado will serve no jail time, and the felony count will be held in abeyance for the duration of probation. He was fined $5,000 and ordered to perform 960 hours of community service.

Machado's attorney read a statement in court, in which the former mayor admitted wrongdoing and stipulated that there was a factual basis for the charges he pleaded guilty to.

A settlement has been reached with an Arizona company that provides medical advice over the telephone.

The business, Company Nurse LLC, agreed to pay $200,000, according to a press release from Sacramento County District Attorney Jan Scully. The company provides medical advice services for numerous businesses and public entities in the state.

An investigation found that the company failed to register with a state telephone medical advice bureau and failed to ensure that those providing phone advice were registered nurses licensed in California, according to a press release.

After the investigation, the company came into compliance. Company Nurse agreed to pay $150,000 in civil penalties and $50,000 for costs of enforcement.

Sacramento County will receive $9,000 in costs and penalties. The civil law enforcement action was announced Friday by district attorneys in Sacramento, Monterey, Amador, San Joaquin and Yolo counties.

In a statement issued by Company Nurse, president Paul Binsfeld said the problem was found to be in a subcontractor and that his company "remain committed ... to abiding by all regulations."

"All of our nurses are licensed in the State of California and always have been. We were greatly disappointed to discover that, contrary to the contractual terms with our subcontractor, the subcontractor did not uphold the same staffing guidelines for state licensing; we ended our agreement with them two years ago," he said in the statement.

The two defendants in a 2011 drive-by shooting that left three young men dead in Rancho Cordova received multiple life sentences this morning in Sacramento Superior Court.

Judge Helena Gweon sentenced the driver, Francisco Delgado, 21, to three terms of life without parole in state prison. She also sentenced the shooter, Saul Isidro-Aucencio, 25, to three terms of life without parole, in addition to a definite term of 16 years and eight months and an indefinite term of seventy-five years to life. In addition, she required the men to pay a total of about $40,000 in restitution.

Delgado and Isidro-Aucencio were convicted by separate juries on May 31 of three counts of first-degree murder for the deaths of Jamir Miller, 15, Richard "Bubba" Ward, 16, and Robert Corpos, 20.

Firefighters plan to break up smoldering hay in a field near Rancho Seco Park.

A Cal Fire spokeswoman said the fire was reported about 7:20 p.m. Thursday near Clay East Road and Twin Cities Road.

Today, Cal Fire plans to use a bulldozer to scrape a larger fire line around the charred hay piles. The grass between the fire line and the hay will then be burned off.

After that, the dozer will break up the hay. Separating the hay will lessen the amount of time the hay sends up smoke in south Sacramento County, the Cal Fire spokeswoman said.

The bigger fire break is necessary to prevent sparks from igniting dry grass during the breaking up of the hay.

A teenager was shot in the stomach after an argument on the street last night in Elk Grove, police said.

The youth's wounds did not appear to be life-threatening.

Police were called about 11:15 p.m. Thursday to a home in the 7000 block of Verdure Way near Bruceville Road and Laguna Boulevard. The caller said her 18-year-old brother had been shot and he was being taken to the hospital by their mother.

The Sacramento County Coroner's office has released the name of a woman killed in what authorities said was a murder-suicide Thursday night.

She was identified today as Darrilynn Groth, 54, of Rio Linda.

Sheriff's deputies said she was in a dating relationship with the man who shot her to death at a home in the 6000 block of Altoona Court in Rio Linda. Deputes said the man, also in his 50s, then drove to an Arden Arcade area home and shot himself to death.

His name has not yet been released by the coroner's office.

A woman reported missing earlier this evening in West Sacramento has been found safe and reuinted with her family.

Zara Tsorayeva (pictured), 79, had last been seen 7 p.m. Thursday evening walking in the area of Safeway at 1298 West Capitol Ave. She was considered at risk because she suffers from Alzheimer's disease, and speaks Russian, but no English, according to a Police Department news release.

The Placer County Sheriff's Department seeks to identify victims in a real estate scam allegedly run by a Meadow Vista man.

Detectives this week arrested William Frank Lordier (pictured), 54, with the assistance sheriff's authorities in Los Angeles County, where one of the victims lives.

Lordier, a former California real estate agent, was selling timeshares on Craigslist, according to a Sheriff's Department news release. Victims gave Lordier their bank account information, which he then allegedly used to take money from those accounts for his own personal gain.

The Elk Grove Police Department will operate a sobriety checkpoint this Saturday between 8 p.m. and 2 a.m. Officers will check passing drivers for signs of intoxication and for proper licensing at an undisclosed location in Elk Grove.

Well-publicized sobriety checkpoints are a way for police departments to remind motorists not to drink and drive. When they are conducted regularly, the frequency of wrecks involving alcohol can drop by as much as 20 percent, according to a press release from the department.

A grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will fund this weekend's checkpoint.

The Galt Police Department and Sacramento County Sheriff's Explosive Ordinance Detail are investigating an incident last weekend in which they believe an explosive device was used to blow up a car.

Around 5:15 p.m. Sunday, Galt police responded to reports of a Chevy Tahoe engulfed in smoke in the 200 block of North Lincoln Way.

Lt. Brian Vizzusi said the bomb might have been an M80 or an M100, commercially sold devices that are illegal to possess in California.

"It's basically like a big firecracker," he said. He added that the device might also have been homemade.

Vizzusi said the police are still unsure why the device was planted and whether the person was targeting the vehicle's owner.

A fire caused heavy damage to a cleaning services company in South Sacramento last night.

The blaze was first reported as a roof fire about 11:15 p.m. Wednesday on Otto Circle. When crews arrived at the scene, they saw an industrial building for the Dust-Tex business well-involved in flames. Crews could feel the heat radiating from the building as they began to fight the fire, a fire official said.

Two hoses were trained on the building from atop aerial ladders to put out the blaze.

Bee reporters answer questions about area crime news, trends and other issues.

QUESTION: In 1996-97, as a teenager, I worked for a grocery store in the Howe and El Camino area. We had a regular female customer who was disabled and wheelchair-bound. I do not remember her name, but I do remember she had "blondish" hair. One day she just stopped coming into the store. I never saw her again, but I heard from another regular customer that she had been severely assaulted and might have died. Do you know what happened to her or her assailant?
Submitted by: John, Roseville

ANSWER: The woman may be Kimberly Thorstad, who used a wheelchair because of injuries suffered in a 1989 auto accident.

According to stories in The Bee, on Jan. 20, 1997, the 24-year-old woman was assaulted and left for dead in her apartment in the 1900 block of Bell Street. Her mother, who lived nearby, discovered her hours later after becoming concerned when her daughter did not answer the phone.

Derik James Brock, a 26-year-old homeless man, was arrested the following month, accused of robbing and attempting to kill Thorstad. At the time of his arrest, he was already in custody in connection with an attempted supermarket robbery. Thorstad reportedly met Brock after she was befriend by his girlfriend.

In August 1997, Brock was sentenced to 50-years-to-life in prison for the attack on Thorstad. By then he was serving a 60-years-to-life sentence for the attempted robbery. He was sentenced under the state's "three strikes" law because he had been previously convicted of raping a 16-year-old girl and stabbing a childhood friend during an argument over a $3 debt.

At the time of Brock's sentencing, Thorstad's parents told the court that their daughter was in a hospital and was unable to hear or communicate. According to public records, she died in September 2000.

Brock, now 41, is in Mule Creek State Prison in Ione.

The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection announced that burn permits in areas within its jurisdiction in Amador County and the western slope of El Dorado County will be suspended July 2.

That leaves property owners with a little more than a week to burn residential debris piles on permissive burn days.

If it is unsafe to burn because of outdoor temperature, wind, terrain or other factors, fire officials advise waiting until winter to complete burning activities.

A man who fled Placer County during his trial on marijuana and related charges 15 years ago is back in custody.

Lawrence Dewald, 46, of Mendocino County was arrested Thursday by Placer County sheriff's deputies and investigators from the Placer County District Attorney's Office.

Dewald was originally convicted Sept. 2, 1996, of possessing marijuana with the intent to sell and being armed in the commission of that offense. He also was found to have two prior strikes under California's three strikes law, according to a Placer County District Attorney's Office news release.

Fire swept through a home in the Empire Ranch neighborhood of Folsom Wednesday morning, causing heavy damage to the structure.

When firefighters arrived at the two-story house in the 1700 block of Dornie Circle, flames were present on both levels of the home. Fire had also entered the attic.

Firefighters from the Folsom, El Dorado Hills and Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District responded to the two-alarm fire. Firefighters prevented the spread of the fire to adjacent houses.

Cause of the fire, which was contained in about an hour, has not been determined. The house sustained about $350,000 in damage.

PHOTO CAPTION: Firefighters fight a blaze in the 1700 block of Dornie Circle. Folsom Fire Department

A tractor trailer caught fire this morning on Highway 65 near Lincoln.

All northbound lanes were reported blocked about 8 a.m. but one lane had re-opened about 45 minutes later, according to a California Highway Patrol website. The fire has been extinguished.

The CHP estimates that all lanes will be open at 10:30 a.m.

A CHP spokesman said the truck was carrying a load of wood chips. No collision occurred.

Sacramento County Sheriff's deputies say that three men pistol-whipped a teenager and took his teeth jewelry, commonly known as grill.

The robbery occurred about 1:30 a.m. Sunday near Elk Grove Florin Road and Gerber Road. Deputies said three young men approached the 17-year-old who was seated in a vehicle.

One of the robbers used a handgun to repeatedly strike the teen in the head. The suspects then took the teen's cash and "gold grill," according to a sheriff's department watch summary.

Sacramento, Stockton, Modesto, Fresno and San Francisco rank in the top 20 regions in rate of vehicle thefts nationwide, according to an insurance company reporting group.

The National Insurance Crime Bureau reported today that overall in 2011 vehicle thefts declined nationwide. The organization looks at vehicle theft data from metropolitan areas, which can include more than a single municipality.

For instance, Fresno includes the entire county of Fresno. Sacramento includes Arden Arcade and Roseville.

Bee reporters answer questions about area crime news, trends and other issues.

QUESTION: Sometime in early 1997, a teenager named Andrew Hesser was shot and killed in Elk Grove. I believe the story at the time was that he was trying to break into a car. What exactly were the circumstances surrounding his death, and were charges ever filed against his killer?
Submitted by: Andy, Elk Grove

ANSWER: Andrew Hesser, 17 and a junior at Laguna Creek High School, was killed in March 1997 during an apparent burglary of a car belonging to a Sacramento County sheriff's deputy.

According to stories in The Bee, Deputy Sherman Watson found Hesser standing next to a parked car outside his Elk Grove home after he was awakened about 3 a.m. by the barking of dogs.

The deputy said he armed himself with a handgun and went outside intending to make an arrest. When he identified himself and told the youth not to move, Hesser reportedly turned and pointed a handgun at the deputy. Watson then fired one round, striking Hesser in the head, and three other youths who were with Hesser sped away in their car.

Investigating officers found next to Hesser a loaded handgun that Watson said he had inadvertently left in his vehicle. Also found nearby were other items taken from Watson's car.

The Sacramento County District Attorney's Office concluded that the shooting was a justifiable homicide, stating that it was reasonable for Watson to believe that Hesser intended to shoot and that his life was in danger.

Hesser's parents, Noel and Mary Hesser, publicly stated that they forgave Watson. Although they believed he had other options, they said they bore him no malice and and that they would not file any wrongful death suits against the deputy.

In a prepared statement, they said, "We would like it said that we do not want Andrew to be remembered for the last events of his life any more than the officer should be remembered for the moment of firing the gun."

The Sutter County Sheriff's Department was assisted by local farmers and a California Highway Patrol helicopter in a search that ended in the arrest of three suspects in a residential burglary.

About 1:30 p.m. Monday, sheriff's deputies responded to a report of a burglary in progress at a home in the 4400 block of Riego Road in Pleasant Grove. A witness reported seeing the suspects get into a 1999 Acura and leave the area. The driver, however, lost control of the vehicle, rolling it into a field, and the suspects ran away on foot, according to a Sheriff's Department news release.

Deputies, with the help of a CHP helicopter and area farmers, searched the area and later located the suspects hiding in a drainage ditch near West Catlett and Vernon roads. The three suspects, all from Sacramento, were taken to Rideout Hospital with minor injuries related to the vehicle crash.

The West Sacramento Police Department is continuing its search for an 82-year-old woman who was reported missing last week.

Police on Friday took a missing person report regarding Georgina Crespo (pictured). Follow-up investigation has determined that she was last seen Wednesday or Thursday in the area of Town Center Plaza in West Sacramento, according to a Police Department news release. They have received information that she might be heading to Texas.

Police are attempting to locate her to ensure her well being.

Donald Atkinson, the former president of the El Dorado County Deputy Sheriff's Association and a retired sergeant, pleaded no contest on felony counts of embezzlement, fraud and perjury, according to Lynda Gledhill, a spokeswoman for the California Office of the Attorney General.

Prosecutors allege Atkinson stole money from the Deputy Sheriff's Association, filed perjured campaign finance reports and stole $100,000 from an elderly woman by securing a loan from her under false pretenses.

As part of a plea agreement, Atkinson will be sentenced to five years in state prison. He will pay $338,348.14 in restitution to the Deputy Sheriff's Association, and he will repay the $100,000 he is accused of stealing from the elderly woman, Gledhill said. In addition, she said, he will direct the California Public Employees' Retirement System to pay $1,000 per month from his retirement account to the victims while he is in prison and on parole.

Atkinson was arrested in March after an investigation by the California Attorney General's Office and the El Dorado District Attorney's Office. He will receive his sentence July 30, Gledhill said.

Editor's note: This story was changed to correct Atkinson's plea.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

A Roseville mother accused of child abuse in connection with the death of her 2-year-old daughter entered a plea of not guilty at her brief arraignment in Placer County Superior Court this afternoon.

Denise Marie McGrath Wilder, 37, was formally charged with cruelty to a child by abuse, neglect or endangering health, under circumstances likely to produce great bodily harm or death in connection with the death of her daughter McKinley Wilder.

Wilder, first arrested April 4 after her daughter's body was discovered, was charged by the Placer County District Attorney's office after the county coroner reported the child died of acute alcohol poisoning and malnutrion. The DA announced the charges Monday.

The Placer County Sheriff's Office has identified a man killed in an accident on Interstate 80 on Sunday involving three vehicles.

According Dena Erwin, a sheriff's spokeswoman, Vacaville resident Billy Tyler, 80, was killed in the wreck, which closed the interstate to traffic in both directions for more than half an hour.

The wreck occurred around 8:30 p.m. just west of Rocklin Road. California Highway Patrol spokesman Officer David Martinez, said that a Mercedes Benz and a Toyota pick-up truck collided while traveling eastbound on the interstate.

The truck crossed a concrete barrier into the westbound lanes, colliding with Tyler's vehicle, a Honda Civic. Tyler was killed. His wife Lois Tyler, 75, who was also in the car, is in fair condition at Sutter Roseville Medical Center.

A Davis school leader said the appearance of a hangman's noose on a high school goal post is an isolated incident.

"Hate and intolerance stem from fear and ignorance," said Winfred B. Roberson, Jr., superintendent of the Davis Joint Unified School District. "This isolated event does not distract us from the positive work and cultural responsiveness that has taken place in DJUSD and the City of Davis."

At the same time, a Davis community activist is calling for a public meeting in the wake of the noose being found hanging from the goal post at Davis High School.

Sacramento police are investigating a home invasion robbery in midtown last night.

Police said two men entered a home in the 2500 block of H Street about 11 p.m. Monday and demanded drugs and money from the resident. One of the robbers was armed with a gun.

The robbers fled with the victim's property, according to a police activity log. The resident was not injured.

The wildland fire that burned a barn and threatened homes on Monday in Wilton started from a welding spark.

"A local rancher was welding a fence line to protect his vegetable garden when a spark from the welding caused a wildland fire," said Capt. Doug Ferro of the Amador-El Dorado Unit of Cal Fire.

Ferro, a fire investigator, said the rancher did all he could to suppress the blaze, but winds and tinder-dry vegetation caused the fire to quickly spread.

Before the 5 p.m. fire was contained more than two hours later, 46 acres had burned.

The Sacramento Fire Department responded to a grassfire south of the airport this afternoon.

Around 3 p.m. a strike team attacked a grassfire on private property by the intersection of Power Line Road and Del Paso Road, according to a spokesperson for the Sacramento Fire Department.

Working against the hot, dry conditions and winds, firefighters were able to contain the damage to 25 acres, the spokesperson said. The fire did not threaten buildings or people, and the cause is unknown.

By 4:15 p.m. fire crews were working to "mop up" -- drench the remaining hot areas in the field - to ensure that flames would not reignite, according to the spokesperson.

A Folsom motel was partially evacuated early this morning and two people were arrested after they were allegedly found heating cocaine in a motel room.

Folsom police officers responded at 6:20 a.m. to a suspicious-person report at the Residence Inn, 2555 Iron Point Road. Officers there contacted 48-year-old Christopher Neal of Folsom.

Neal was behaving erratically, waving his arms wildly, and appeared to have difficulty speaking and staying awake, leading officers to believe that he was under the influence of a controlled substance or having medical problems, a police news release states.

The Placer County District Attorney's Office has filed child abuse charges against a Roseville mother in connection with the death of her 2-year-old daughter after the coroner found the child had acute alcohol poisoning and malnutrition.

The DA's Office announced today that Denise Marie McGrath Wilder, 37, is charged with cruelty to a child by abuse, neglect or endangering health, under circumstances likely to produce great bodily harm or death in connection with the death of her daughter McKinley Wilder. The complaint further alleges that Wilder personally inflicted great bodily injury upon a child under the age of 5.

Wilder also is charged with abuse or endangerment under circumstances likely to produce great bodily harm or death in connection with the abuse and neglect of another daughter, age 5.

An Elk Grove woman who had been missing since early this month has been found safe.

Elk Grove police reported that Sylvia Valdez (pictured), 29, was located in Chico and has been reunited with her mother.

Valdez had been last seen in Nevada City earlier this month. Police sad she had telephoned her mother and indicated that she was going to return to her Elk Grove residence via an unidentified bus service. When she had not returned by last week, her family reported her missing.

Police said she was considered as risk because she had been diagnosed as schizophrenic and was not in possession of her medication.

Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District firefighters were kept busy Sunday -- a day when the mercury hit 100 degrees.

At 10:24 a.m. crews responded to 8294 White Sands Way to find heavy fire and smoke coming from the garage of a home. Inside the garage, two vintage automobiles were on fire.

Crews were able to limit the spread of fire into the home. Firefighters located the resident of the home, who suffered minor burns and respiratory problems.

By Debbie Arrington
darrington@sacbee.com

Just as many weekend travelers were returning home Sunday night, a major accident closed Interstate 80 in both directions just west of Rocklin Road.

According to the California Highway Patrol, an eastbound vehicle went over the center divider into westbound lanes shortly after 8:30 p.m. At least three vehicles were involved in the wreck, including one rollover.

The CHP issued a Sigalert as traffic came to a complete halt in both directions for more than a half hour. By 9:05 p.m., one lane of westbound traffic was reopened. All but one of the eastbound lanes also were reopened to traffic. The Rocklin Road on-ramp to westbound I-80 was closed as CHP officers investigated.

By Debbie Arrington
darrington@sacbee.com

A 14-year-old girl was pulled from the Sacramento River this afternoon and rushed to UC Davis Medical Center, according to the Sacramento Metro Fire Department. Her condition was unknown.

Firefighters received a 911 call at 3:07 p.m. from Miller Park Marina reporting that the teen had possibly been underwater for several minutes.

By the time a water rescue crew, engine company and paramedics had reached the scene, the teen had been pulled from the water by bystanders who were celebrating Father's Day at the river. Emergency personnel administered CPR, then transported her to the hospital.

The incident was a reminder of the river's inherent danger, said rescue crews. On hot days, the cold water is inviting, but swimmers and boaters of all ages should wear life jackets.

Two Sacramento area firefighters were taken to a local hospital for treatment of heat exhaustion today while battling a garage fire in South Sacramento.

A resident working on a car in his garage in the 8200 block of White Sands Way also suffered burns from the fire, which broke out in the engine compartment around 10:30 a.m., Chief Scott Cockrum of the Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District said. The resident, who was not identified, also was taken to a local hospital.

Cockrum said the two firefighters treated for heat exhaustion are from two different departments -- the Metro Fire District and from the Sacramento Fire Department. Neither firefighter was identified.

Galt police arrested a fugitive early today on outstanding warrants tied to the alleged assaults on her former boyfriend and his new girlfriend in Sacramento earlier this year.

GALLERY: Sacramento region's Most Wanted fugitives

The fugitive, 26-year-old Tina Barron, was featured on "America's Most Wanted" television show on April 27.

Barron was apprehended shortly after 12:30 a.m. today in Galt with assistance from members of the Joint Elk Grove-Galt SWAT team.

The Sacramento County Coroner has identified the two victims of shooting homicides from early today.

In the first shooting, 17-year-old Chou Vang was killed in the 7800 block of Detroit Boulevard.

In the second, Anthony Jon Weaver, 38, was shot and killed inside a bar in the 3200 block of Northgate Avenue.

Read an earlier story on the shootings.

Sacramento police have arrested a 33-year-old man on drug charges, but had to use a Taser to capture him, according to the department's daily activity reports.

Police say they first attempted to stop Deniz Lopez after he committed an unspecified traffic violation while riding a bicycle.

The suspect fled, discarding a backpack as he ran, and entered a blackberry thicket, near 73rd Street and 20th Avenue.

Sacramento Metro Fire reports that it is now on the scene of a fire at Florin Road and Gardner Avenue.

The blaze is described as a roof fire in an old meeting hall.

No injuries have been reported and the fire is only a single alarm.

California Highway Patrol officers chased a driver up and down Interstate 5 north of Yolo County Friday before disabling his car and closing the freeway to arrest him.

Initially, police received a call that a car was driving north on I-5 at 40 mph, straddling the lanes so other drivers could not pass on either side.

CHP officers attempted to stop the vehicle just north of Arbuckle in Colusa County, but the driver fled north.

Sacramento detectives are investigating two separate shooting incidents that resulted in the deaths of two men early today.

Officers were called to the first incident at 12:41 a.m., arriving on the 7800 block of Detroit Boulevard.in Meadowview and finding a a 17-year-old male with a fatal gunshot wound, according to a release from the Sacramento Police Department.

The victim, who has not yet been publicly identified, was shot in the upper body.

Bee reporters answer questions about area crime news, trends and other issues.

QUESTION: What happened to the killers of the 1995 killing spree that happened in a couple of California cities? Some of the people killed include Nghiep Thich Le and Hung Dieu Le of Sacramento.
Submitted by: JLofLH, Sacramento

ANSWER: Two Asian gang members were sentenced to death for a 1995 murder spree.

Firefighters have contained a grass that burned approximately 105 acres near Lincoln.

Daniel Berlant, a spokesman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, said the fire near Watz and North Dowd roads in the area of the Highway 65 bypass was reported about 5:30 p.m.

He said there are a number of ranches in the area.

West Sacramento police seek the public's help in locating an 82-year-old woman who has been missing from her home since Tuesday.

Georgina Crespo speaks only Spanish. Her daughter reported that Crespo left her residence Tuesday and has not returned home.

Crespo reportedly frequents the area of the Nugget market in the Southport shopping center. Although she does not suffer from dementia, she may not know where she is if she is beyond a half-mile radius of her home, according to a Police Department news release. She refuses to take prescribed high-blood pressure medication, and it is not known whether she took money or food with her.

Sacramento County Sheriff's Department detectives arrested two people this morning in connection with a robbery and shooting in south Sacramento last week.

Detectives booked Antione Estes-Dyson and Akayla Martin, both 18, on charges of robbery and assault with a deadly weapon, and Estes-Dyson on violation of parole.

On the morning of June 5, a sport-utility vehicle pulled up beside a woman and her 4-year-old daughter walking on Lincolnshire Drive near the intersection of Franklin Boulevard and Florin Road, a sheriff's department news release states.

The Sacramento Fire Department's hazardous materials team is investigating a chemical spill at a south Sacramento business.

A Fire Department spokesman said firefighters responded to an alarm at the business at 8580 Younger Creek Road, between Florin Perkins Road and Watt Avenue. They located the spill and summoned the hazardous materials team.

Officials said the building has been evacuated.

No further information was immediately available.

By Peter Hecht
phecht@sacbee.com

A Placerville elementary school janitor today was sentenced to 50 years to life in prison for gunning down the school's beloved principal.

John Luebbers, 45, was convicted April 24 of first degree murder in the February 2, 2011 shooting of his 20-year friend and golfing partner, Louisiana Schnell School principal Sam LaCara, 50.

El Dorado County Superior Court Judge James R. Wagoner imposed the mandatory sentence of 25 years to life on the murder count, plus a 25-year sentencing enhancement for use of a firearm during the killing.

Firefighters from Cal Fire and Butte County Fire have contained a 100-acre blaze in Butte County. One outbuilding was destroyed.

The fire, near Highway 70 and Palermo Road, started about 2 p.m. and was fueled by winds from the northeast and low humidity, said Cal Fire spokesman Daniel Berlant.

Berlant said aircraft dropped fire retardant and water on the fire, which was contained by approximately 4:30 p.m.

Berlant advised homeowners to be especially cautious this weekend.

"With these kinds of conditions, a fire can quickly grow out of control," he said.

Emery Allen, a member of the Gunz-Up gang, has been sentenced to 40 years to life in prison in connection to a shootout with a rival gang in 2009, district attorney Jan Scully announced today.

A jury convicted Allen in April of the attempted murder of Junius Winters, a member of the rival gang, G-Mobb/Guttah Boyz.

Allen instigated a gunfight between Gunz-Up and G-Mobb/Guttah Boyz in September 2009 involving as many as 13 people, according to a press release from the district attorney's office.

The shootout was part of a spate of violence between the two gangs, as well as the Oak Park / 4th Ave Bloods, that included 26 shootings between 2008 and 2010, according to the press release.

Redding police have arrested one suspect are asking for help in locating another in a shooting Thursday afternoon.

According to a press release from the Redding Police Department department, witnesses saw two men chasing Ryan James Hunt, 18, through South City Park in Redding around 3:20 yesterday. The men tripped Hunt and began to kick him, then one of the men pulled a handgun from his waistband and shot Hunt in the mouth, the department said.

Police have apprehended Redding resident Tristan Daniel Almond, 22, who they believe was the shooter, said Redding Police Cpl. Chris Jacoby. They are still seeking the other assailant, described as a white or Latino man in his 20s, 6-foot-1, having a thin build and brown hair cut short on the sides and longer on the top.

A $1,000 reward is offered for information leading to the capture of the suspect. Anyone with information should call Shasta County Victim Witness (530) 225-5220 or the Redding Police Department's Investigations Division at (530) 225-4214.

PHOTO CAPTION: Tristan Daniel Almond, 22

A vacant Sacramento Metropolitan firehouse in Orangevale will be the home of a new fire crew of military veterans hired by the Bureau of Land Management.

The BLM is leasing the station at 5148 Main Ave. as a duty station for a 20-person crew.

BLM firefighting official Paul Bannister said his agency is opening the station for two reasons.

The California Highway Patrol reported that all lanes of northbound Interstate 5 near the Sacramento International Airport are now open -- however, traffic was slowly moving at noon.
A vehicle fire closed lanes for 90 minutes starting at about 10 a.m.

A CHP traffic website noted that a recreational vehicle caught fire just south of Airport Boulevard.

Tips from citizens led to the arrest of a man exactly two months after he is suspected of robbing a Folsom bank.

Kenneth Allen Hogue, 43, of Cameron Park, arrested Wednesday by Folsom police, is suspected of robbing the El Dorado Savings bank, 300 East Bidwell St., on April 13.

The robber fled on foot with an undisclosed amount of cash. Hogue was also booked on outstanding warrants that included possession of concentrated cannabis and possession of narcotics and non-narcotics.

PHOTO CAPTION: Kenneth Allen Hogue

Bee reporters answer questions about area crime news, trends and other issues.

QUESTION: There were a few murders in Foresthill in the early '90s. I believe one of them was a couple shot execution style in their own home on Foresthill Road, possibly a drug deal gone bad. Can you tell me the circumstances of the crime and outcome?
Submitted by: Curious, Foresthill

ANSWER: The bodies of Bonnie Irene Hall, 50, and her husband John Frederick Hall, 57, were found in the bedroom of their Foresthill Road home in August 1990.

According to stories in The Bee, Bonnie Hall had been shot several times in the head and John Hall had been shot once in the head. Both had been shot at close range.

Authorities believe the two were shot at least 24 hours before they were discovered by Bonnie Hall's 27-year-old son when he went to the house about 11 a.m. Aug. 16.

John Hall, who was disabled, ran an automotive painting business at the house, and his wife was a homemaker.

Placer County authorities said both had a prior conviction for cultivation of marijuana and had been recently arrested on another drug charge.

A $5,000 reward was offered at the time through the Secret Witness program for information leading to arrests and/or convictions in the case.

The Sutter County Sheriff's Office announced that a two-month investigation has led to the arrest of a 50-year-old man and seizure of an estimated $10,000 worth of methamphetamine and cocaine.

About 7 a.m. today, a joint narcotics task force known as NET 5, assisted by the Sutter County Sheriff's Office and Yuba City Police Department, served a search warrant at a residence in the 1900 block of First Avenue in the community of Sutter.

Authorities seized 13 ounces of methamphetamine, a gram of cocaine, seven marijuana plants, scales, baggies and MSM, which is used as a cutting agent for drugs, according to a Sheriff's Office news release. They also located an explosive device, which officials said appeared to be a quarter-stick of dynamite.

A 19-year-old man has been arrested in connection with a recent series of robberies in Rancho Cordova.

Xavier Lomba, 19, was taken into custody this morning at his Rancho Cordova home and booked into Sacramento County Jail, according to a Rancho Cordova Police Department news release. He is being held on $100,000 bail.

He is accused of six robberies. The first occurred May 17 at the Chevron gas station at 2358 Sunrise Blvd. and the most recent was reported Sunday at CVS Pharmacy at 3301 Zinfandel Drive. The other robberies occurred May 22 at that Subway sandwich shop, 3581 Mather Field Road, and at the Liquor and Food store, 10401 Folsom Blvd.; May 29 at the Wienerschnitzel restaurant, 11070 Coloma Road; and June 6 at the Pizza Guys restaurant, 2351 Vehicle Drive.

Residents of six apartments in the Foothill Farms area have been displaced as the result of a fire late this afternoon.

Assistant Chief Scott Cockrum of the Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District said the fire was reported at 5:30 p.m. at 4909 Date Ave. He said it appears the fire started in the rear deck area of a second-story unit and quickly extended along the deck and into the attic. Once in the attic, the fire spread in both directions.

Although most of the fire damage was confined to the attic area, Cockrum said it damaged electrical wiring and other utilities, leaving six second-story apartments uninhabitable. He said the Red Cross was responding to aid the displaced tenants.

The fire was brought under control within about 30 minutes and no injuries were reported.

A mother was arrested this afternoon on suspicion of felony child endangerment after leaving an infant alone in a locked car.

Sacramento Police Department spokesman Sgt. Andrew Pettit said that about 3:40 p.m. a passer-by spotted the baby girl in car seat inside a vehicle in the parking lot of the Target Store at 3601 North Freeway Blvd. in the Natomas area. The vehicle was locked and as firefighters were attempting to open the car, the mother, identified as Andrea Pas-Perdomo (pictured), 31, returned to the vehicle with her 2-year-old son.

Police arrived and learned that the infant had been left in the vehicle for five to 10 minutes.

Sacramento County sheriff's homicide detectives are seeking information regarding the death of a 62-year-old man following an assault last month in North Highlands.

Manuel Reyes was walking near his home on Myrtle Avenue near Polk Street about 10:30 p.m. May 27 when he was assaulted and knocked to the ground, according to a Sheriff's Department news release. He suffered head trauma and was hospitalized that night. Officials said he died several days later as a result of his injuries.

Witnesses reported seeing a dark-colored sedan with two black males outside the car and a female driver. It was seen leaving the area where Reyes was found and heading west on Myrtle Avenue toward Watt Avenue.

An Amber Alert issued this afternoon for three Santa Rosa children has been canceled, and Santa Rosa police report that the youngsters have been found safe.

An Amber Alert has been issued after the three girls, ages 7, 6 and 3 year old, were reportedly abducted by force about 11 a.m. today by their biological father.

Authorities said the father, 25-year-old Jose Albert Rojo Bojorquez (pictured), has a history of violence. The children were taken from their biological mother.

A fire in south Placer County has been contained after burning 184 acres west of Roseville.

Daniel Berlant, a spokesman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said the fire was reported at 1:23 p.m., burning in a flat, undeveloped area of grasslands in the area of Fiddyment Road and Athens Avenue.

Thirteen fire engines, two water tenders and a bulldozer responded to the scene. Berlant said Cal Fire and the South Placer County firefighters were assisted by firefighters from Roseville, Rocklin and Lincoln.

Although the cause of the fire has not been determined, he said this is a reminder to residents to use caution in outdoor activities, especially given the forecast for strong winds and temperatures in the 100-degree range this weekend.

Jacob Rodriguez and Isaiah Rose, the two McClatchy High recent graduates arrested for felony vandalism at the school, were released without bail during their arraignment hearing today.

The two agreed to stay away from McClatchy High while their case is pending.

The families of both said they're thankful the two will be released from jail.

Sacramento fire officials say a man injured this morning in a fire at a Natomas apartment complex has died.

The fire broke out about 10 a.m. in a complex in the 1500 block of Waterwheel Drive near West El Camino Avenue and Truxel Road. Flames shot from the roof of the apartments as firefighters poured water on the units.

The man who was burned was transported to a hospital where he died. His name has not been released.

Fire officials said a dog found in an apartment was resuscitated.

The cause of the fire has not been released.

Photo caption: Firefighters work at the scene of a three-alarm fire near Truxel Road and Waterwheel Drive in Sacramento Thursday morning. Photo by Randy Pench / rpench@sacbee.com

Video caption:Deputy Fire Chief Lloyd Ogan talks to the media about the fire and it's victims. Video by Randy Pench / rpench@sacbee.com

Video by Sacramento Fire

A Lodi man suffered a broken leg when flatbed tow truck drove into the back of a fully loaded refrigerated big rig trailer on Highway 99 between Sacramento and Yuba City.

The 3 p.m. Wednesday crash closed Highway 113 for about two hours and reduced lanes of travel on Highway 99 so that crews to could extricate the tow truck driver, according to the California Highway Patrol.

Officers said the big rig was rolling forward on northbound Highway 99 at Highway 113 when the light turned green. The tow truck, driven by David Vargas, 34, of Lodi was approaching from behind at a speed "not greater than 65 mph," according to a CHP release.

Bee reporters answer questions about area crime news, trends and other issues.

QUESTION: In 1996, Angelo Garcia shot a man in Antelope, killing him. Can you tell me the whole story?
Submitted by: loc, Sacramento

ANSWER: A Sacramento County jury convicted Angelo Matthew Garcia of second-degree murder and second-degree robbery in the fatal shooting of 17-year-old Eric Daniel Hester-Lee.

The Sutter County Sheriff's Office seeks the public's help locating a man sought in connection with the June 24 shooting of a 16-year-old boy in Live Oak.

Sheriff's officials identified the suspect as James Patrick Holcomb (pictured), 21.

On June 24, sheriff's deputies responded to the 10,000 block of Larkin Road in Live Oak regarding reports of multiple gunshots in the area. When they arrived, deputies found a 16-year-old boy who had suffered a gunshot wound to the upper thigh, according to a Sheriff's Office news release.

Citrus Heights police today announced the arrests of two men in connection with an October carjacking.

Detectives on Tuesday served arrest and search warrants on two suspects. Arrested on suspicion of carjacking, robbery and conspiracy were Alejandro Reyes (left photo) of Citrus Heights and Marlin Garcia (right photo) of Sacramento, both 20 years old. The men were taken into custody at their respective homes, according to a Police Department news release.

A third suspect is still at large.

A teenage driver is in custody and another person has been taken to a hospital after a police pursuit in Elk Grove ended in a crash on Highway 99 near Sheldon Road.

Elk Grove police spokesman Officer Christopher Trim said that shortly before 5 p.m. officers attempted to stop a speeding black Toyota Camry westbound on Sheldon Road near Elk Grove-Florin Road. The driver of the Camry, later identified as a 17-year-old Sacramento resident, failed to stop and led police on a pursuit.

At one point, the driver cut through the WinCo supermarket parking lot, then headed eastbound on Sheldon. The driver then attempted to travel southbound on Highway 99, but because of the vehicle's speed, he was unable to navigate a turn. He lost control of the car and struck two other vehicles, a Ford SUV and a commuter van, before the Camry crashed and caught fire.

A woman testified in El Dorado Superior Court today that Sacramento bail agent Kenneth Waters bailed her out of jail, expecting sex as partial payment.

The woman, whose identity is being withheld by the court, testified as Jane Doe in a preliminary hearing, saying that Waters asked how she looked when she called him from a jail holding cell seeking bail after she was arrested for DUI.

Waters bailed her out and later took her to a motel room where he performed oral sex on her, which she understood to be half-payment for bail, the woman testified.

Elk Grove police are asking the public's help in locating a 29-year-old woman who has been missing since early this month.

Sylvia Valdez (pictured) is considered at risk because she has been diagnosed as schizophrenic and is not in possession of her medication, according to a Police Department news release.

Valdez was last seen in Nevada City early this month. Police said she had telephoned her mother and indicated that she was going to return to her Elk Grove residence in the 8200 block of Geneva Point Drive via an unidentified bus service. As of today, she has not returned to her home.

A 31-year-old man has pleaded guilty in Sacramento Superior Court to multiple charges related to armed robberies and a sexual assault that occurred last year.

Between May 16, 2011, and June 1, 2011, Kenju Osborne committed six armed robberies at businesses throughout Sacramento County. In each robbery, Osborne pointed a handgun at employees and demanded their money and personal property, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release. During one robbery at the Pavilions shopping center, Osborne sexually assaulted a female employee.

Sacramento County sheriff's detectives worked with the police department in Sparks, Nev., to apprehend Osborne after he committed an attempted robbery in Sparks, officials said. DNA analysis conducted by the district attorney's crime lab identified Osborne as the suspect in the sexual assault and robbery at the Pavilions shopping center.

Sentencing is set for July 13 by Superior Court Judge Geoffrey Goodman. According to the District Attorney's Office, Osborne will receive a sentence of 31 years to life in prison.

A vehicle crashed into a HomeTown Buffet in Elk Grove and injured two restaurant patrons this afternoon, according to Officer Chris Trim, spokesman for the Elk Grove Police Department.

An 81-year old man was parking his sand colored 2009 Toyota Camry in front of the restaurant on Bruceville Road when the vehicle accelerated onto the sidewalk about1:25 p.m., Trim said. Two pedestrians were entering the buffet when the car struck the front doors, Trim added.

Medical personnel attended to an adult male, who suffered major trauma to his left leg and an adult female who was not physically injured, Trim said. Both people were transported to an area hospital for treatment.

Trim said the driver was not injured in the crash.

Officers are still investigating the cause of the collision, and they do not believe alcohol or drugs were involved.

The front doors of the HomeTown Buffet suffered significant damage and the business is closed for the remainder of the day, Trim said.

The California Highway Patrol shut down Interstate 80 in the north area of the city following the report of a possible explosive device.

Officers responded to I-80's West El Camino off-ramp around 10:30 a.m. today after CalTRANS crews saw something that appeared to be a pipe bomb on the side of the freeway, according to CHP Officer Liz Dutton.

Eastbound traffic was diverted off West El Camino and the bomb squad arrived on scene to detonate the device, Dutton said.

The situation was rendered safe when authorities determined that the object was not a bomb and I-80 reopened at 12:40pm, she added.

Police have released the names of two recent McClatchy High School graduates who were arrested in connection with Tuesday's vandalism on the Freeport Boulevard campus. Isaiah Rose and Jacob Rodriguez, both of whom are 18, were arrested for felony vandalism, resisting arrest and conspiracy.

There is still one suspect outstanding in the case. This vandalism incident comes nearly a week after McClatchy High School was vandalized as part of a senior prank, resulting in 30 students being barred from walking in graduation.

When the first vandalism incident occurred, several students reported that a separate small group of students was responsible for spraying graffiti and vandalizing the campus. The school did not release the names of those students, though this second case of vandalism draws parallels to the first -- they both resulted in graffiti on the school's campus.

A DUI and Driver's License checkpoint will be in an undisclosed Lodi location June 15 between 6:30 p.m. and 2:30 a.m.

The Lodi Police Department reported they will check for signs of alcohol impairment, drug impairment and proper licensing. Drivers who appear to be under the influence will be subjected to a field sobriety test.

Officers warned that if people fail their field sobriety tests, they should be prepared to face jail, vehicle storage fees, license suspensions, insurance rate increases, fines, fees and DUI classes. The total cost could exceed $10,000.

A man on a motorized scooter was allegedly the subject of a robbery at May Street and Harris Avenue, but police were able to pin down the suspects when they drove by the scene.

The Sacramento Police Department reported a man on motorized scooter called them and described three suspects who drove up to him and pointed a knife and gun at him before stealing his scooter.

As police officers talked to the victim, the three suspects drove by in another vehicle and fled from their vehicle. Police eventually apprehended them.

The names of the suspects were not immediately available.

Citrus Heights police are investigating a burglary this morning that led to a fruitless car and foot chase around San Juan Avenue and Farmgate Way.

Citrus Heights Police Officer Chad Morris said two men dressed all in black were burglarizing a cigarette shop around 5 a.m. when police starting tearing after them. The two men hopped into a truck that police later found to be stolen.

After a brief vehicle chase, the men jumped out in a Citrus Heights neighborhood, causing the police to set up a perimeter around San Juan Avenue and Farmgate Way. Although police brought in K-9 units and investigated the area, they were unable to locate the suspects.

Bee reporters answer questions about area crime news, trends and other issues.

QUESTION: Whatever happened to the lawyers Nikolai Tehin and his wife, Pamela Stevens, who were charged with embezzling the million-dollar settlement obtained on behalf of a Sacramento infant who suffered birth injuries?

Submitted by: Kathy, Davis

ANSWER: Although California Bar Journal discipline summaries indicate that Nikolai Tehin and Pamela Stevens were charged by the State Bar of California with identical misconduct, it does not appear that Stevens was criminally prosecuted.

State Bar online records show that the two, who were husband and wife and partners in a San Francisco law firm, resigned from the bar with charges pending in 2004 and neither may practice law in California.

According to newspaper stories, a federal jury convicted Tehin in October 2004 of dipping into $2 million of his clients' settlement accounts in 2001 and 2002. He was found guilty of six counts of mail fraud and nine counts of money laundering, and was sentenced in April 2005 to 14 years in prison.

Some of Tehin's victims were disabled children whose families hired him to represent them in medical malpractice suits. Others were low-income tenants of some Napa apartments who were owed $1.3 million in the settlement of a class-action lawsuit.

According to an online roster of federal prison inmates, Tehin, 65, is incarcerated at the U.S. Penitentiary in Atwater. He is scheduled for release in October 2017.

A 92-year-old woman missing since Sunday night from her south Sacramento County home has been found and is safe.

Sacramento County sheriff's spokesman Deputy Jason Ramos said Mary Valenzuela, who has mild dementia, returned to a previous residence.

Valenzuela had disappeared from her home in the 7500 block of Hazelnut Lane near Gerber and Power Inn roads.

Sacramento police are investigating a report that a 16-year-old girl was sexually assaulted while out with friends Monday night.

The incident was reported about 8:30 p.m. in the 7900 block of La Riviera Drive. Police spokeswoman Michele Gigante said the teenager was with a group of acquaintances, including an adult female friend, when the incident occurred.

Police said the assault was not random and the alleged assailants were people that the girl knew.

Gigante said no arrests have been made.

A Fair Oaks investment adviser has been sentenced to four years and nine months in prison in connection with a ponzi scheme that involved stealing money from clients' retirement accounts.

Thomas Brown Hammond, 63, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge John A. Mendez, who also ordered Hammond to pay $536,521 in restitution to his victims. Hammond pleaded guilty in January to embezzling money from employee retirement accounts, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

Hammond was a registered securities representative and investment adviser who worked in Fair Oaks. According to court documents, from December 2010 through Feb. 23, 2011, he began stealing money from his clients' retirement and investment accounts. Some of this money came from employee benefit plans and employee pension benefit plans.

A 22-year-old man was shot this morning during an argument outside a casino on 16th Street in Sacramento.

Police received a report of a shooting at 10:19 a.m. Sacramento police spokesman Sgt. Andrew Pettit said the man had gone to the casino with his father. There they were confronted by a group of acquaintances and an argument ensued over the payment of money.

The 22-year-old man and another man got into a vehicle in a parking lot north of the casino, and another man was outside the vehicle. During an argument inside the vehicle, the victim was shot in the upper body. The wounded man got out of the car and ran through the casino to Dreher Street seeking help.

Sacramento police say a suspicious package found at 24th and K streets proved to be a piece of plastic with duct tape on it.

The bomb squad was dispatched to the location about 4:46 p.m. after an employee of a business reported finding the package in a trash bin.

Some buildings in the immediate area were evacuated as a precaution. The area was determined to be safe about 7 p.m.

Although the package proved to be harmless, police spokeswoman Officer Michele Gigante said the department takes all such reports seriously and follows protocol for potentially dangerous devices.

A former Roseville resident who claimed to be already in custody at the time his roommate was murdered in 2010 was unable to convince a Placer County jury. On Monday, they found him guilty of the homicide.

Brad Robert Miller, 47, was convicted of shooting to death his housemate Eric Dale McGhee on April 15, hiding him in bedroom closet, then spending the next few days driving around town in the dead man's car and in possession of his cell phone.

Miller was arrested on April 17 after driving erratically near Sierra College Boulevard.

McGhee's body was discovered the following day after his daughter and ex-wife went to the home to check on him. Prosecutor Garen Horst said McGhee had been preparing to ask Miller to move out prior to the murder.

The defense argued that the condition of the body suggested that McGhee was killed while Miller was in custody.

Sentencing is set for July 20.

The Sacramento County Sheriff's Department arrested a suspect in a 16-year-old homicide case of a teenage girl.

Terry Glen Short, 41, was taken into local custody Tuesday morning in connection with the death of Jessica Sanchez, 13, according to a Sacramento County Sheriff's Department news release.

In February of 1996, Sanchez's body was found in Florin Creek Park along Persimmon Avenue in south Sacramento.

A copper theft occurred at Holy Spirit Parish School at the 3900 block of West Land Park Drive.

Sacramento Police Sgt. Andrew Pettit said the investigation is ongoing, but said a "substantial" amount of copper was stolen. He said copper thefts are common, but they tend to come in waves, especially during off-school times like spring break, winter break and summer break.

"This might be the beginning of the trend," he said.

Pettit said the people in charge of investigating the case are seeking video footage to determine suspects.

Two Sacramento Superior Court juries returned second-degree murder convictions today against Torrey Levarr Adams and Darrell Miller for the fatal Dec. 20, 2010, drive-by shooting of Antonne Nelms on Mack Road.

Judge Michael P. Kenny scheduled a July 12 sentencing date on Adams, 32, and Miller, 19. Jurors found that Adams fired the shot that killed the 20-year-old Nelms. Adams is facing a sentence of around 50-to-life. Miller, who was in a car with Adams car at the time of the shooting, is looking at a term of around 21-to -life.

According to evidence at trial, Miller had been wounded in the Dec. 14, 2010, shooting at a the Fly Cuts & Styles barbershop on Stockton Boulevard in which two people were killed. Police and prosecutors theorize that Miller, Adams and a third man were cruising Mack Road to engage in a possible retaliatory attack.

The driver of a Ford pickup truck is dead after the vehicle left the roadway in Clarksburg and was found overturned in an irrigation ditch.

California Highway Patrol Officer Jason Gonzales said someone called around 6:08 a.m. to report an overturned truck at Z Line Road and Willow Point Road. He said the truck's driver, whose identity has yet to be released, was pronounced dead at 6:22 a.m. when first responders arrived at the scene.

Gonzales said CHP officers arrived around 6:40 a.m and the investigation is ongoing. He said it appears that nobody else was involved in the accident.

A man sustained non-life-threatening injuries after being stabbed in three times in his torso and back regions this morning on the 6400 block of Denton Way, according to Citrus Heights Police Lieutenant Daman Christensen.

The 36-year-old man was outside of the home of 44-year-old Gayleen Ramsay, with whom he had a prior relationship, when he was stabbed around 3 a.m., Christensen said. Police arrested Ramsay for assault with a deadly weapon because of her role in the man's stabbing.

Emilee Hahn, a three-and-a-half-year-old girl, drowned Monday at her family's pool on Porter Road in Folsom.

Folsom Fire Department responders arrived at the home at 5:51 p.m. and found the child's father trying to give CPR to his unresponsive daughter. Medics from the El Dorado Hills Fire Department rushed the girl to the hospital, where she didn't respond to life-saving efforts and was pronounced dead.

After an investigation into the drowning, the Folsom Fire Department say they found nothing suspicious that would indicate criminal behavior from the family. The Fire Department found that the girl was out of her father's sight for less than five minutes.

Bee reporters answer questions about area crime news, trends and other issues.

QUESTION: Six or seven years ago there was a woman who was treasurer and bookkeeper with a charity that I volunteered for -- Christmas in April, aka Rebuilding Together -- that was charged with embezzling several thousand dollars from the charity. I remember her name was Coppe. Whatever happened with this case?
Submitted by: Garth, Antelope

ANSWER: Linda Anne Coppe pleaded guilty in federal court in Sacramento in 2004 to 21 counts of mail fraud.

According to court online records, she was sentenced to 60 months probation.

Coppe began volunteering in 1997 for the Sacramento affiliate of Rebuilding Together, a national charity that repairs houses for low-income homeowners. According to a story in The Bee, she had control of the group's finances as treasurer and bookkeeper.

Investigators said that from July 2000 to September 2002, she engaged in a scheme that included paying personal credit card balances with the charity's checks and writing checks to herself. She admitted to stealing $47,000.

A board member said at the time that the the local nonprofit organization was reimbursed through insurance and did not have to disrupt programs.

The federal Bureau of Land Management announced today that fire restrictions are in effect for all public lands managed by the bureau's Mother Lode Field Office.

Included are approximately 230,000 acres of BLM-managed lands in Nevada, Yuba, Placer, El Dorado, Amador, Sacramento, Calaveras, Tuolumne, Stanislaus, Sutter and Mariposa counties. Campers are urged to familiarize themselves with special restrictions before visiting public lands in these counties.

The restrictions prohibit all open fires on public lands because of extremely dry conditions, according to a news release.

A 68-year-old man has been found guilty of stalking a young couple in his Sacramento neighborhood.

James O'Rourke was convicted by a jury Friday of felony stalking and violating a restraining order, felony prior stalking convictions and a misdemeanor charge of willful disobedience of a court order, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release.

In 2006, O'Rourke was convicted of stalking a young couple who lived across the street from his house on 40th Street. When he got out of prison in 2009, he moved back into the same house and continued to harass and follow the same victims until the summer of 2011.

A man who was killed early Saturday when the motorcycle he was riding crashed into the rear of a cattle trailer on Highway 99 has been identified by the Sacramento County Coroner's Office as Robert Moses Zamora, 43, of Galt.

California Highway Patrol Officer Michael Bradley said Zamora was riding his motorcycle northbound north of Twin Cities Road at a high rate of speed about 1:40 a.m. when he ran into the back of a Ford F-250 truck pulling a cattle trailer. Zamora, who was en route to work in Sacramento, was pronounced dead at the scene.

Bradley said the impact of the collision caused the motorcycle to become lodged inside the trailer, killing at least one of the animals. The driver of the truck was not injured.

He said the cause of the collision is under investigation. Officers seek to determine whether lights on the rear of the trailer were working properly and also await a toxicology report.

Social Security Administration offices in the 8500 block of Folsom Boulevard were evacuated for about two hours this afternoon after a suspicious object was reported at the site.

Sacramento Police Department spokeswoman Officer Michele Gigante said the department's bomb squad was dispatched about 12:05 p.m. after federal officers reported that a dog alerted to a possible explosive device during a routine patrol of the building.

The object was determined not to be an explosive.

Gigante said the investigation took about two hours and the building was evacuated as a precaution.

By Ed Fletcher
efletcher@sacbee.com

Federal authorities have confirmed that they have executed a search of a Sacramento medical marijuana dispensary today.

Phone calls to the location, El Camino Wellness, 2511 Connie Dr., were not being answered as of midday Monday.

Casey Rettig, a spokeswoman for the federal Drug Enforcement Agency, said she could not talk about the situation other than to confirm the early morning execution of a search warrant.