Sacto 9-1-1

Roseville police are warning of calls from phony "Microsoft support technicians" who are interested in credit card fraud - not solving computer problems.

At least two Roseville residents have received unsolicited calls from the men with East Indian accents who said they were from Microsoft and wanted to help resolve computer issues.

One resident was talked into using her credit card to buy phony anti-virus remote access software. She was directed to download and install software, which allowed the scammers to get into data on the victim's computer, according to a police activity log.

Scrap metal thieves are flush with success after taking a toilet part from a fast food urinal in Roseville.

On May 10, according to a Roseville police crime report, two men entered a Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant on Sunrise Avenue about 2 p.m. While one acted as a lookout, the other went into the men's restroom.

Once inside, the thief removed the control valve for a urinal. The two men then left the restaurant and rode off on bicycles.

The public is invited to join the Roseville police and fire department for a day of community safety activities at the Westfield Galleria Mall this Saturday. The event, which runs from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. includes ladder truck, K9, SWAT, auto extraction demonstrations.

The grandfather of a dead 2-year-old Roseville girl will be released today after spending the weekend in solitary confinement in Sacramento County's Main Jail after being arrested Friday for possession of child pornography.

Daniel McGrath, 58, told Roseville investigators about the pornography while he was being interviewed after his daughter Denise McGrath Wilder's arrest. Wilder was arrested for the murder of toddler McKinley Wilder, but no charges have been filed pending a toxicology report.

The stash of child porn includes approximately 3,000 images and videos on CDs, hard drives and VHS home movies, according to a criminal complaint filed by the U.S. attorney's office.

Authorities sought to keep McGrath jailed without bail indefinitely, but his attorney Mark Reichel secured his release on a $200,000 bond.

"There are always two sides of every story," Reichel told reporters on the steps of the federal courthouse. He said the evidence described in the complaint was quite old, but that he has not had a chance to examine it.

The grandfather of the 2-year-old whose mother was arrested in connection with her death has been arrested and is facing federal child pornography charges, the Roseville Police Department confirmed Friday.

Daniel McGrath, 58, told Roseville investigators about the pornography while he was being interviewed after his daughter's arrest. The stash of child porn includes approximately 3,000 images and videos on CDs, hard drives and VHS home movies, according to a criminal complaint filed by the U.S. attorney's office.

Denise McGrath Wilder was arrested April 4 at her father's Diamond Oaks Road home after her 2-year-old daughter was found dead while in her care. She was reportedly intoxicated and could not explain what happened to her daughter McKinley Wilder, according to the complaint.

Wilder was released on her own recognizance and no charges have been filed.

During the investigation of McKinley's death, the Roseville Police Department sought and received a warrant to search McGrath's home.

"You are going to go on (the computer) and see some underage stuff," McGrath told investigators in a videotaped interview.

McGrath told investigators that he did not distribute the material and that is was from a user group from years ago.

The material on a hard drive not connected to McGrath's computer was created between 2002 and 2009 and was most recently accessed on March 31, 2012, according to a forensic analysis of the computer.

Roseville police Chief Daniel Hahn will be in The Bee newsroom this morning to answer questions from readers during a live chat online.

Join Bee staff writers Kim Minugh and Ed Fletcher at www.sacbee.com/live at 11 a.m. as they lead the discussion with Hahn. Bring questions. Hahn will be available until noon.

The live chat on www.sacbee.com is part of The Bee's monthly series of chats with regional law enforcement leaders, and follows last month's chat with Sacramento County District Attorney Jan Scully.

Roseville police reported that two public schools were recently broken into by burglars.

Excelsior Elementary School classrooms, 2701 Eureka Road, was burglarized in the early morning hours May 2 and again on Monday. Computers and audio-visual equipment was taken.

Then, overnight today, someone broke into a classroom at George A. Buljan Middle School, 100 Hallissy Drive, taking computer and audio-visual equipment.

Roseville police seek to identify a man believed to have been involved in two bank robberies during the past week.

River City Bank at 3992 Douglas Blvd. was robbed at 1:05 p.m. today, and police say the man shown in a surveillance photo resembles the man who robbed a bank April 26 at Sunrise Avenue and Cirby Way.

In today's robbery, the man showed the teller a note demanding money, took an undisclosed amount of money and left on foot. No weapon was seen and no one was reported injured.

Roseville police need the public's help in identifying a bank robber.

The robber held up the River City Bank inside the Bel Air supermarket at Sunrise Avenue and Cirby Way at aboupt 5 p.m. Thursday. He handed the clerk a note demanding money and then left the store with cash.

He was last seen on foot heading toward Cirby Way. No getaway vehicle was observed.

The robber was described as a white man in his 30s with a short, scruffy beard and mustache. He wore a yellow baseball cap with a neon green pattern, white-framed sunglasses and a long-sleeved gray t-shirt or sweater and blue jeans.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Roseville Crime Stoppers at (916) 783-7867.

Roseville police report a rash of thefts from locked truck tool boxes.

Four thefts of tools have occurred over the past week from tool boxes in the beds of pickups parked overnight in the Meadow Oaks and Cirby Ranch neighborhoods.

No sign of forced entry was visible, leading police to suspect that whomever took the tools had a key or set of keys to fit the locks on the boxes.

Police recommend parking pickups in the garage if there are tools in the boxes. Or, if a garage is not available, install a hasp and use a sturdy padlock on the tool box.

Another tip from police: take especially valuable tools inside at night.

State Attorney General Kamala D. Harris today announced the arrest of several gang members and their associates in the Sacramento region.

The arrests, according to a state Department of Justice news release, highlight the Yolo Narcotic Enforcement Team's continuing efforts to combat gangs and narcotics trafficking in local communities. The team is made up of all law enforcement agencies in Yolo County and is led by the state Department of Justice.

The operation in West Sacramento was dubbed "Operation Red Sash" because of the Northern Riders and Broderick Boys criminal street gangs' affiliation with the color red and the Nortenos criminal gang, officials said.

Roseville police are warning of a renter scam on Craigslist.

Police said that a person seeking to rent a home in Roseville responded to a Craigslist posting for a house only to find out that the poster was an imposter. Initially interested, the prospective renter became suspicious because of demands sought by the supposed landlord.

The person who said they were renting out the home wanted the rent and a security deposit sent to her via Western Union before she would show the house.

The renter investigated and learned from the actual agent renting the home that the Craigslist poster neither owned the house nor had authority to rent the home.

Roseville building contractor Leo Wheeler was sentenced today in Sacramento to four years and three months in prison for defrauding investors in a real estate project.

Wheeler, 56, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Garland E. Burrell Jr. and will be subject to three years of supervised release following his prison term.

According to court documents, Wheeler defrauded more than 10 investors of hundreds of thousands of dollars by submitting approximately 85 fraudulent invoices for work he falsely claimed he had performed on a 30-lot subdivision known as Creekside Oaks Estates in Lake County. Wheeler used three fictitious companies -- Kenneth Gutman Trucking, SNC Solutions and California Maintenance -- to funnel funds to himself and to other projects. During an interview with an IRS special agent, Wheeler admitted he had falsified numerous invoices and wrongly diverted investor funds, authorities said.

The Roseville mother in legal limbo after her 2-year-old daughter was found dead in her custody won't be attending the child's funeral after the girl's father successfully sought a temporary restraining order against her.

An order issued Monday by Placer County Superior Court Judge Frances Kearney specifically says Denise Wilder must stay 500 yards away from any "funeral and/or memorial."

Wilder, 37, was arrested April 4 after authorities say they discovered her intoxicated and her child McKinley Wilder dead. She was booked into the Placer County Jail on suspicion of murder and child neglect, but was released Monday without bail as the district attorney waits for a toxicology report from the coroner's office.

A Sacramento County man has been arrested in connection with the March 31 burglary of a gas station convenience store in Roseville.

After Roseville police last week released surveillance video showing a suspect burglarizing the store, detectives received helpful leads, according to a Police Department news release.

As a result, Roseville police and Sacramento County sheriff's deputies on Thursday searched the home of a parolee on El Camino Avenue in Sacramento County. They reported finding empty cash registers trays, as well as illegal drugs and evidence of drug sales.

By Ed Fletcher
efletcher@sacbee.com

Denise Marie Wilder, the 37-year-old Roseville woman arrested last week on suspicion of killing her 2-year-old daughter, was released from jail on her own recognizance Monday.

The Placer County District Attorney's Office has not yet filed charges in the case. In a prepared statement, District Attorney R. Scott Owens said it's necessary to have a final report from the coroner before a final decision to file charges are made.

Wilder's attorney, Jess Bedore, said prosecutors have no case against his client. "The DA has no evidence, that is why she is leaving (the jail)," he said. "There are too many unknowns. The police made a call that day. I don't know that it was the right call. This tells you that there is no case."

In a court hearing Monday, prosecutors did not oppose Wilder's release. Her next court date has been set for May 8.

Roseville mom Denise Wilder is scheduled to be arraigned at 1 p.m. Monday in Auburn on charges that she murdered her 2-year-old daughter McKinley Wilder.

Wilder is also facing child neglect charges. The reading of the formal charges is set to take place in the courtroom adjacent to the jail, where she has been held since Wednesday without bail.

Neither the Roseville Police Department nor the Placer County District Attorney's office have offered details about the child's death other than to say Wilder was intoxicated and that the death was suspicious.

Wilder was arrested at around 5 p.m. Wednesday when authorities discovered the unresponsive toddler along with Wilder at her parents' residence on the 300 block of Diamond Oaks Road. Wilder's 5-year-old has been placed with her family pending a child custody hearing.

Roseville police have arrested a 37-year-old woman on suspicion of homicide in the death of her child.

Denise Marie Wilder, who police said was drunk when authorities found her daughter dead in a home in Roseville last night, is suspected of killing 2-year-old McKinley Wilder. Authorities are not saying how the little girl died.

At about 5 p.m. Wednesday, police and fire personnel responded to the home in the 300 block of Diamond Oaks Road to a report of a child not breathing. The home belongs to the child's grandparents who were out of town.

A family friend had gone to the home looking for the Denise Wilder. When the little girl was found to be unresponsive, the friend called police.

Wilder's 5-year-old daughter was also at the home. She was initially released to Child Protective Services but has been reunited with her family.

A police press release said that due to suspicious circumstances, detectives arrested Wilder on suspicion of homicide and child endangerment. The investigation is on-going and the cause of the child's death is pending an autopsy.

PHOTO CAPTION: Denise Wilder booking photo

Roseville police have released the picture of a gas station intruder in an effort to identify the rock-throwing burglar.

The man broke into the gas station store at Sunrise Avenue and Cirby Way in the early morning hours Saturday by smashing a window of the business. He then went inside and took the cash register.

The burglary is just one of several overnight break-ins at businesses along Cirby Way, Sunrise Avenue and Douglas Boulevard, police said.

Police said the burglar appears to be Hispanic, in his 30s or 40s, with dark hair and mustache. He drove off in a 1994-97 Honda four-door sedan with a moon roof.
Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (916) 783-7867.

A Roseville resident was struck in the face during a burglary of his home last week.

A Roseville police advisory newsletter said the resident of Weston Way came home about 5:40 p.m. Thursday to find three people burglarizing his house. One of the burglars punched him in the face before the three intruders fled out the back door.

Officers arrived and searched the area but could not find the burglars. The resident suffered a minor injury from the punch.

Police said the burglars got into the home by breaking a window in the back of the residence. They took figurines, an iPod, a cell phone and a laptop. A Roseville officer recovered most of the items where they were tossed at a nearby greenbelt.

The burglar who assaulted the resident was described as white, about 6 feet tall with a slender build and blue eyes. He wore a black ski mask, long-sleeved brown shirt and blue jeans.

The other two burglars were only described as wearing dark clothing.

An autopsy of skeletal remains found Thursday in Placer County have failed to turn up any obvious signs of foul play, according to sheriff's officials.

Placer County Sheriff's Department investigators are following up on leads today in an effort to identify the skeletal remains found near the Morgan Creek Golf Course.

The remains appear to have been underwater in a creek for a period of time. DNA testing will be done to determine identity, officials said.

After the autopsy, sheriff's officials said that the remains had characteristics of a male, but medical experts were not yet able to positively confirm gender.

Sheriff's spokeswoman Dena Erwin said a passer-by came upon the remains about 5 p.m. Thursday and called the Sheriff's Department.

Sheriff's deputies responded to a creek near the golf course west of Roseville and determined that the remains were those of a human. The remains were taken to the the county morgue where an autopsy was performed this morning.

Placer County Sheriff's Department investigators are following up on leads today in an effort to identify skeletal remains found near the Morgan Creek Golf Course.

The remains appear to have been underwater in a creek for a period of time. DNA testing may have to be done to determine identity, officials said.

Sheriff's spokeswoman Dena Erwin said a passer-by came upon the remains about 5 p.m. Thursday and called the Sheriff's Department.

Sheriff's deputies responded to a creek near the golf course west of Roseville and determined that the remains were those of a human. The remains were taken to the the county morgue where an autopsy is being performed this morning.

Erwin said it has not been determined whether the remains are those of a male or female.

Roseville officers had to say goodbye to a fine police dog on Sunday.

Drago, a German Shepherd, served the police department for five years until his retirement due to illness last summer. He spent his last months at home with his handler, Officer Ron Goodpaster.

Drago suffered from degenerative myelopathy, a progressive disease of the spinal cord. The disease begins with lack of coordination in the hind legs and the weakness progresses until the dog cannot walk.

"We're grateful for Drago's service, and will miss him," stated the Roseville police public safety news.

    

Roseville police have identified the man who died in a Saturday night shooting as Floyd Raymond Allen, 42, of Sacramento.

Two other men, one of them Allen's brother, were shot about 8:13 p.m. when a drug deal went bad in a parking lot near stores and restaurants in the Creekside Town Center in the 1200 block of Galleria Boulevard, according to police.

Five men, all acquainted, climbed into a van to conduct a methamphetamine deal, officers said. Four of the men allegedly planned to rob the drug dealer.

Paul Michael Schmeer of Auburn today pleaded guilty in federal court in Sacramento to serial bank robbery.

According to court documents, Schmeer, 30, on Dec. 5, 2011 robbed the Chase Bank branch on Douglas Boulevard in Roseville. He presented a note to a teller, demanding money and stating that he had a gun.

The teller complied with the demand, and Schmeer left the bank with $4,000, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

Sign-ups are being accepted for a golf tournament to benefit the Roseville Police Volunteer Program.

The tournament will tee off at 8 a.m. March 23 at Morgan Creek Golf Course, 8791 Morgan Creek Lane, Roseville.

Roseville Police volunteers contribute thousands of hours to the community each year. They help patrol parks and schools, provide free vacation house checks for residents and perform various other tasks for the Police Department.

All proceeds from the golf tournament will help provide equipment and other needs for the volunteers program, according to a Police Department news release.

A prankster is at work in Roseville with a decidedly low-tech goof to get a few chuckles.

Roseville police said that on two occasions somebody taped a spoon to a window or door. Tied to the spoon was fishing line.

In the first incident on Tanzania Drive, the line ran across the street to Kenwood Park. It appears, Roseville police said, that the prankster was endeavoring to create a remote "door knocker."

The prankster could pull the line, produce a knock and then watch and giggle from a distance at the reaction of the homeowner. The same prank was tried at a business on Cirby Way.

Both incidents happened late at night on February 28 or 29.

A quick-change artist recently duped a clerk in Roseville with an old scam.

On March 1, a man gave the clerk at a Harding Boulevard business five $20 bills and requested a $100 bill in exchange.

The clerk handed him a $100 bill, but the man showed her a $10 bill, claiming that is what she mistakenly gave him, according to a Roseville police activity log.

He eventually talked her into taking back the ten and giving him another $100 bill. It's an old trick, police said.

The Sacramento Children's Home is warning people to beware of a group of individuals going door to door claiming to seek donations on behalf of the Children's Home.

On Saturday, individuals apparently went door to door in an east Roseville neighborhood seeking donations, according to a Sacramento Children's Home news release. Solicitors had receipts to give for donations and reportedly told people that cash was the best option.

Officials said the Sacramento Children's Home neither supports nor endorses such door-to-door solicitation, and this group is not collecting donations for Children's Home programs. The Sacramento Children' Home, as an organization, does not raise funds in this manner.

Anyone approached by door-to-door solicitors asking for donations for the Sacramento Children's Home is encouraged to report the activity to local police.

The arraignment of Christopher Jon Michael Northam, 25, who is accused of shooting his father to death last year was delayed Friday in Placer Superior Court to March 22.

Northam is accused of gunning down Roseville businessman Christopher D. Northam at his place of busines in May 2011. Northam could face the death penalty for his alleged role in the shooting.

Also appearing in court was the younger Northam's ex-wife Averill Elizabeth Easley, 34, of Roseville. Authorities say she lied to police repeatedly during the nearly nine-month investigation into the shooting. She has been charged with being an accessory after the fact. Easley's attorney asked that her client be released on her own recognizance Friday but the request was denied by Judge Colleen Nichols.

Northam was found shot to death May 30, 2011, in an Industrial Boulevard warehouse where -- with his son's help -- he was trying to build an audience for a new indoor sports business.

While early scuttlebutt suggested shady foreign investors or a disgruntled former employee killed Northam, investigators said they noticed inconsistencies in statements from the son.

An autopsy is being conducted on the body of a teenager who police said jumped off a parking garage at the Roseville Galleria.

Roseville police and Roseville Fire Department personnel responded at 5:50 p.m. Monday to the shopping center where a young man had jumped from a five-story parking structure, according to the police department.

He was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Roseville police today arrested a son in the killing of his father last May.

Christopher Dale Northam, 44, was fatally shot May 30 at the warehouse in Roseville where he was about to open an innovative new business: indoor skim-boarding. Northam had at least one gunshot wound to his head.

This morning detectives arrested Christopher Jon Michael Northam, 25, of Roseville, on a warrant charging him with the homicide of his father.

The son's ex-wife, Averill Elizabeth Easley, 34, of Roseville was also arrested on a warrant charging that she was an accessory after the fact. She is suspected of giving false and misleading information to police about key facts.

At the time of his death, Northam was reportedly negotiating with a major investor from Dubai who was interested in helping launch and expand the business.

Dubbed Skim X, the venture aimed to combine skim-boarding and skateboarding in an indoor water park. Northam was a partner in the business with his son, Christopher.

Roseville police conducted a nearly 9-month investigation, which included witness interviews, search warrants, the examination of financial records and the elimination of other potential suspects, according to a department press release.

In the end, police said, detectives concluded that the elder Northam was killed by his son for financial gain, according to a press release.

PHOTO CAPTION: Christopher Dale Northam

Roseville police have arrested two men they suspect are responsible for burglaries in the same neighborhood.

The first man, Daniel Richard Emard, 28, of Roseville, is suspected of burglarizing a home on Milstead Way Monday morning. A resident about 5 a.m. noticed a sport utility vehicle parked the wrong way on Milstead Way and a man going up to a home.

The neighbor called police who arrived at the residence near Secret Ravine Parkway and Sierra College Boulevard and took Emard into custody for suspicion of burglary.

A few hours later, a resident on nearby Stone Canyon Drive found a burglar holding her jewelry box in her living room. She tried to grab it away, but the burglar fled with the jewelry box.

An investigation led to officers searching a home in Rocklin and the recovery of stolen property. They also arrested Alexander Michael Souron, 21, of Rocklin, on suspicion of robbery and burglary.

A Roseville man is headed to prison for bank fraud and mail theft.

U.S. District Judge William B. Shubb today sentenced Darryl M. Everett, 47, to three-and-a-half years in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release for multiple counts of bank fraud, mail theft and conspiracy to commit such offenses, according to a federal Department of Justice news release. Everett also was ordered to pay more than $10,000 in restitution to his victims.

According to court documents, Everett stole U.S. mail on multiple occasions from the customer lobbies of the Discovery, Town and Country, and Strong Ranch post offices. He altered stolen financial instruments found in the stolen mail, and organized other people to cash the altered checks and money orders at financial institutions in Sacramento County. More than four banks and 20 postal customers were victimized, according to the news release.

Children interested in learning about the job firefighting will have an opportunity to look behind the scenes during the Roseville Fire Department's Kids Fire Camp, June 25-30.

The department will select 24 campers, ages 11 to 14. Those attending the camp will learn about water safety, first aid, rescue practices, physical fitness and firefighting skills, according to a Fire Department news release. Campers will work in teams and put their skills into action through a variety of hands-on exercises.

Off-duty Roseville firefighters will volunteer their time to serve as camp counselors throughout the week.

A bank robber arrested Tuesday led Roseville police to himself unintentionally, officials said today.

Ogan Gencer, 20, is suspected of holding up a Wells Fargo bank branch on Sierra College Boulevard at 10:10 a.m. Tuesday.

However, he is also accused of calling 911 to report a fake emergency miles away 15 minutes before the holdup, during which the robber gave a teller a note indicating he had a gun.

In making a call to distract police, Gencer forgot a few things, according to Dee Dee Gunther, spokeswoman for the department.

Roseville police announced the arrest this evening of a 20-year-old man in connection with the robbery of a Wells Fargo Bank this morning.

Roseville detectives took Ogan Gencer into custody in Folsom about 6 p.m. He will be booked into Placer County Jail on suspicion of robbery, according to a Police Department news release,

About 10:10 a.m., a man entered the Wells Fargo Bank at 8850 Sierra College Blvd. and gave a clerk a note demanding money, police said. He was given an undisclosed amount of money and was seen leaving the area on foot.

Two Bay Area women were arrested by Placer County sheriff's deputies after they allegedly purchased thousands of dollars worth of gift cards with counterfeit credit cards.

Monique Smith (pictured, left), 38, of Brentwood, and Bailey Lucas (right), 21, of Hayward, were arrested Tuesday afternoon near Interstate 80 and Highway 65 by deputies who were watching the roadways for the suspected getaway car, according to a Sheriff's Department news release.

Officials said an investigation revealed that the women visited Target stores in Lincoln, Roseville and Auburn that day, purchasing VISA gift cards with counterfeit credit cards. Security officers at the Auburn Target store became suspicious and began watching Lucas. They also notified patrol deputies.

A recently installed carbon monoxide alarm alerted a Roseville family to dangerous levels of the toxic gas in their home.

Roseville firefighters responded late Wednesday night to a home on Vernon Oaks Drive where a carbon monoxide alarm activated. Firefighters determined that there were dangerous levels of the gas in the home because of an improperly vented fireplace.

Thanks to the alarm, nobody in the family became ill, according to a Roseville police activity sheet.

Roseville firefighters remind residents that carbon monoxide is odorless, colorless and deadly. Common sources are cars running in closed garages, fuel-burning space heaters, water heaters with bad venting and blocked chimneys.

Roseville fire officials say a carbon monoxide detector saved a family from possible illness or death.

Roseville firefighters responded about 11:45 p.m. Wednesday to a report that a carbon monoxide detector had activated at a home in the 600 block of Vernon Oaks Drive. They arrived to find a family of eight standing in the front yard and a recently installed carbon monoxide alarm sounding in the residence.

Using specialized detectors carried on all Roseville fire engines, firefighters quickly determined that there were dangerous levels of carbon monoxide in the home, according to a Fire Department news release.

Roseville police say officers used pepper spray on a teenager who appeared on the Woodcreek High School campus this afternoon and fought with officers after refusing to identify himself or to leave when asked to do so by school officials.

Roseville Police Department spokeswoman Dee Dee Gunther said the school resource officer, a Roseville police officer assigned to the campus, requested backup from other officers about 2:40 p.m. after the 17-year-old youth, who was not a Woodcreek student, became uncooperative.

When the youth refused to identify himself or leave the campus, the officer attempted to take him into custody. A scuffle ensued and pepper spray was used.

By Ed Fletcher
efletcher@sacbee.com

Roseville Police believe the motorcyclist killed in a collision Thursday evening -- identified today as Grant Alan Severson, 42, of Roseville -- was at fault in the accident.

Severson, who was riding a 1981 Kawasaki motorcycle, was westbound on Pleasant Grove Boulevard when ran the red light as was stuck by a Mazda pickup truck traveling south on Washington Boulevard.

That collision launched Severson into an Audi sedan waiting in left turn lane of eastbound Pleasant Grove Boulevard, said Dee Dee Gunther, a spokeswoman for the department.

A motorcyclist was killed late Thursday afternoon after running a red light and clipping a vehicle in a heavily traveled intersection.

Roseville Police Lt. Marc Glynn said the motorcyclist was westbound on Pleasant Grove Boulevard about 5:30 p.m. and went through a red light at Washington Boulevard. Vehicles in two left-turn lanes on Washington Boulevard were turning onto eastbound Pleasant Grove, and the motorcyclist clipped one of them, Glynn said.

No one in the other vehicle was injured.

The name of the motorcyclist has not been released pending notification of family.

The intersection was closed for several hours while police investigated the crash.

A motorcyclist has died in a collision that has closed a heavily traveled Roseville intersection.

Roseville Police Department spokeswoman Dee Dee Gunther said the collision between the motorcycle and a car occurred about 5:30 p.m. at the intersection of Washington and Pleasant Grove boulevards. She said the motorcyclist was pronounced dead at the scene.

Details regarding the collision were not immediately available.

Gunther said the intersection is expected to be closed for several hours while police conduct their investigation. Motorists are asked to avoid the area and use alternate routes.

Roseville police credit an a alert resident and quick response by law enforcement officers with the arrest of four men suspected of stealing catalytic converters.

At 3:42 this morning, a resident of the Crocker Ranch/Diamond Creek area called police after seeing two men working under a vehicle near her home. Numerous officers converged on the area and took three suspects into custody, according to a Police Department news release. A fourth got away but was later arrested in Sacramento.

Inside the suspects' van, officers found several catalytic converters believed to have been stolen during the night from the Roseville and Rocklin areas.

Roseville police said DNA evidence has led to the arrest a man on suspicion of burglarizing Oakmont High School more than a year ago.

About 13 months ago, somebody broke into the high school's cafeteria during the night, entered an office and removed a safe that had been bolted to the floor.

Detectives had no leads at the time. However, crime scene technicians collected evidence at the scene and submitted it to the state Department of Justice crime lab for a DNA analysis.

DOJ officials recently notified Roseville police that they had a match.

On Jan. 5, detectives arrested a 29-year-old Carmichael man on suspicion of burglary, according to a police department police log.

Public safety officials are warning that coin-style lithium batteries -- found in items ranging from singing greeting cards to remote-controlled electronics devices -- can pose a hazard for young children.

Because these devices are not designed for children, the battery compartments can be easy to open, increasing the risk that small children may get hold of them and swallow them. The batteries, if ingested, can cause serious disabilities or death, according to a news release from the Roseville Fire Department and Safe Kids Placer County.

In 2010, more than 3,400 cases of people swallowing button-style batteries were reported in the United States, and the number of cases resulting in serious injury or death to children has more than quadrupled in the past five years, officials said. The most serious cases have been associated with 20 mm diameter batteries, about the size of a nickel, because they can easily lodge in a small child's throat. All fatalities and 85 percent of major injuries were among children age 4 and younger, according to the news release.

Roseville police are alerting residents to two scams recently aimed at citizens.

One of the scams involves telephone fraud and the other car repair extortion. In both instances, the citizens did not cooperate with the suspected rip-off artists, a police activity log noted.

In the telephone fraud, a resident on Dec. 26 received a call from somebody claiming to be from the City of Roseville. The caller said that the resident's electric bill was past due and immediate payment was needed.

The caller asked for credit card or bank account information over the telephone. The resident checked her current bill and verified it was not past due.

She refused to provide the scammer with any personal information, police said.

In the case of the car repair scam, a resident on Dec. 26 was leaving a business in the 300 block of North Sunrise Avenue when his vehicle was blocked by a gray 2008 Honda Civic. The occupants of the Honda offered to fix the citizen's car dent for $150.

He declined, but the men were very insistent, police said.

To get away, the citizen told the men he would agree to the repair but needed to withdraw money from his ATM. The resident instead drove away and called police.

The scammers followed and continued to pester him, leaving when officers arrived in the area. No arrests were made.

Roseville police have released the name of a pedestrian who died after being struck by a car on Douglas Boulevard over the weekend.

She was identified as Evelyn Marion Montoya, 80, of Roseville.

Police said that Montoya was walking across Douglas Boulevard in the middle of the block east of Sierra Gardens Drive about 5:30 p.m. Sunday. After crossing the westbound lanes, Montoya stepped off the center median onto eastbound Douglas Boulevard into the path of a car, according to a press release.

The driver, who had just turned onto eastbound Douglas from southbound Sierra Gardens Drive, did not see Montoya in time. She was transported to Sutter Roseville Medical Center where she was pronounced dead.

The collision is under investigation.

Roseville police recently arrested two people as part of an effort to put the pressure on scrap metal dealers who police say are creating a market for thieves, according to authorities.

Like many other law enforcement agencies, Roseville police say they have seen a deluge of metal theft, with 65 reports of stolen catalytic converters alone in the last month and a half, according to a news release. To help stem that trend, police are cracking down on dealers in the region who are illegally buying large qualities of sawed-off catalytic converters, copper wire and other "obviously stolen metal items," police said.

"The recyclers need to follow the law," said Sgt. Cal Walstad. "That's why the laws are set up the way they are."

A silent alarm aided police in locating a suspect following a vehicle burglary in a Roseville parking garage.

At 5:30 a.m. Monday, officers responded to a silent alarm activation in the area of the garage in the 400 block of Vernon Street. They found that someone had broken out the window of a car and taken video games and other items. They soon found a suspect, who was on foot nearby, and recovered the stolen items, according to a Police Department news release.

Anthony Herrera, 34, who police said has no permanent address, was arrested on suspicion of burglary and is being held in the Placer County Jail on $70,000 bail.

The name of the driver whose pickup truck rolled over and landed on an Interstate 80 onramp near Orlando Avenue on Monday has been released by Roseville police.

He was identified as Thomas Jesse Clayton, 43, of Roseville.

Roseville police and fire crews responded about 8:45 p.m. to a single-vehicle rollover that began on Orlando Avenue near Auburn Boulevard. Clayton's pickup was traveling south on Orlando Avenue when his vehicle went off the roadway, through a fence and rolled onto the eastbound I-80 onramp, according to a Roseville Police Department news release. He was ejected from the pickup.

Clayton was taken by ambulance to Sutter Roseville Medical Center, where he died Tuesday morning.

A 43-year-old Roseville man died today of injuries suffered Monday night when his pickup truck rolled over and landed on an Interstate 80 onramp near Orlando Avenue.

Roseville police and fire crews responded about 8:45 p.m. to a single-vehicle rollover that began on Orlando Avenue near Auburn Boulevard. The driver of the 1989 Chevrolet pickup was traveling south on Orlando Avenue when his vehicle went off the roadway, through a fence and rolled onto the eastbound I-80 onramp, according to a Roseville Police Department news release. The driver was ejected from the pickup.

The man was taken by ambulance to Sutter Roseville Medical Center, where he died this morning. His name has not been released pending notification of family.

One night last week more than a dozen catalytic converters were stolen from Roseville residents.

Roseville police reported that last Tuesday night and Wednesday morning at least 14 of the emission control devices were taken from vehicles, mostly Toyota pickups and SUVs.

The rash of thefts occurred in the Foothills/Junction, Vineyard and Woodcreek neighborhoods. The converters, mounted underneath vehicles, are sold to metal recyclers.

Roseville police note that the devices contain valuable metals. To replace a converter costs $500-$1,000, police said.

While some motorists don't have garages, police say that's the best spot to keep a vehicle, especially a pickup or SUV with plenty of space underneath for a thief to cut away a catalytic converter.

A Sacramento man is a suspect in a string of crimes, including a home invasion robbery in which children were tied up.

Delaudea Else, 19, was booked into Placer County Jail on suspicion of robbing a Glenbrook Avenue home in Roseville on Oct. 26. In that incident, the resident answered a knock at his door and was confronted by two men with guns.

The gunmen entered the home and tied up two adults and their small children with zip-tie restraints. The suspects then left with several items, including a small gun safe containing a handgun, cell phone and cash.

Two Roseville residents were arrested on suspicion of debit card theft, allegedly using a stolen card to shop at several Auburn area supermarkets.
Wesley Hinkley, 32, and Elsa Sheets, 34, were arrested this week by Auburn police.
Auburn Police officer Chris Forman received a report on Sunday that an EBT/debit card was stolen from an Auburn resident. The card was then used at Grocery Outlet, Raley's, Save Mart and Safeway.
Forman learned that Hinkley and Sheets were suspects in the card theft, according to a police department press release. Forman arrested Hinkley on Monday and booked him into Placer County Jail.
The next day, Sheets was interviewed by Forman and also arrested and booked.

A Roseville man is among five people accused of rigging bids at public real estate foreclosure auctions.

A U.S. District Court in Sacramento today unsealed an indictment against four real estate investors and one auctioneer, or "crier," for their alleged participation in conspiracies to rig bids and commit mail fraud at public real estate foreclosure auctions in San Joaquin County.

The indictment, returned by a federal grand jury in Sacramento on Dec. 7, charges W. Theodore Longley, 62, of Roseville; Wiley C. Chandler, 47, of Lodi; Andrew B. Katakis, 47, of Danville; Donald M. Parker, 48, of Valley Springs; and Anthony B. Joachim, 44, of Stockton with conspiring with other unnamed co-conspirators to rig bids and commit mail fraud when purchasing selected properties at the foreclosure auctions. The indictment also charges Longley, the crier, with aiding and abetting the conspirators.

Roseville police are warning residents to not leave purses and wallets in vehicles because they are prime targets for opportunistic thieves.

In the past week or so, there have been four instances of thieves entering cars and making off with purses:

-- Last Thursday an off-duty Roseville police officer spotted a stolen car. The man driving the stolen car was arrested and inside the vehicle was a purse stolen from an unlocked vehicle in Rocklin.

-- On Saturday, during daylight hours, a purse was stolen from an unlocked vehicle in the 100 block of Riverside Avenue in central Roseville.

-- On Sunday, about 1 p.m., somebody entered an unlocked car parked on Verbena Court and got into a purse left on the front seat, taking credit cards. The thief promptly used the credit cards in Sacramento.

-- On Monday, someone broke into a vehicle parked at a fitness center in the 300 block of North Sunrise and took a purse stowed in the trunk. Police suspect the thief watched the woman place the purse in the trunk at the fitness center.

Roseville police say that thieves are partial to breaking into vehicles at fitness centers because they know the victims will be working out and away from their cars for about an hour.

Roseville police need the public's help in identifying a bank robber.
The man is suspected of holding up the Chase Bank, 1800 Douglas Blvd., at about 3:45 p.m. Monday. The robber entered the bank, gave the teller a note demanding money and left the bank with cash.
He was described by police as a white man in his 20s, 6 feet 2 inches tall with blond hair. He was wearing a black and red baseball hat, gray sweatshirt and black shoes.
Anyone with information is asked to call Roseville Crime Stoppers at (916) 783-7867.

PHOTO CREDIT: A suspect in the robbery of Chase Bank on Douglas Boulevard

Catalytic converter thefts continue to be committed in Roseville.

Police put out a warning earlier this month that thieves were sliding under Toyota trucks and SUVs and cutting free the expensive emission control devices. Catalytic converters contain metals that are recycled by thieves.

The theft of the devices continues with three reported stolen during the nighttime hours from Toyota 4Runners:

-- Nov. 24-25, from a 4Runner in an apartment complex lot in the 2800 block of Quail Ridge West.

-- Nov. 26, from a 4Runner in the 1400 block of Valley Glen Drive.

-- Nov. 25-26 from a 4Runner in the 2100 block of Dorrington Drive.

-- Just before 2 a.m. Nov. 25, a patrol officer checking a stopped minivan on Lucian Court found a man hiding in the back seat. Also in the van, pipe-cutting tools and a hacksaw -- implements that could be used to steal catalytic converters. The 33-year-old Sacramento man was booked on suspicion of possessing burglary tools.

The safest place to park Toyota pickups and 4Runners is in a locked garage, say police.

PHOTO CREDIT: A catalytic converter awaits installation at Muffler Tech in Sacramento. Hector Amezcua/Sacramento Bee

Attention Toyota owners: Roseville police say there has been a rash of catalytic converter thefts -- including a few at the mall.

The expensive emission control devices are being stolen from under Toyota pickups and sport utility vehicles. Among the recent thefts:

-- At the Galleria Mall, catalytic converter thefts were stolen from a few vehicles parked near Nordstrom about 5 p.m. Saturday. A man in an older red pickup truck was seen near one of the thefts.

-- In the 7600 block of Malta Drive in northern Roseville between midnight and 6 a.m. on Friday someone took the converter from a 1998 Toyota Tacoma pickup parked on the street.

-- At the Martha Riley Community Library on Pleasant Grove Boulevard in western Roseville between around 8 p.m. on Nov. 9 a thief removed a converter from a 1989 Toyota pickup.

Police advise parking high-profile Toyotas in the garage. If someone is spotted suspiciously looking at the undercarriage of a vehicle, call 911, police said.

Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation are searching for a man who robbed a bank just before noon today on Foothills Boulevard in Roseville.

Officers were called to River City Bank, 4001 Foothills Blvd., at 11:52 a.m. regarding a robbery in which a man approached a bank employee and gave her a note demanding money, according to a Roseville Police Department news release. The robber implied that he had a gun, but police said no weapons were seen.

The bank employee gave the robber an undisclosed amount of cash, then left. No injuries were reported.

Roseville investigators have arrested two men allegedly involved in a marijuana sale gone bad outside a Galleria Boulevard restaurant.

Narcotics police arrested brothers Sterling Mario Harlan, 33, of Roseville and Austin Tanner Harlan, 19, of Citrus Heights on suspicion of selling marijuana. During the arrest on Thursday, detectives confiscated about a pound of marijuana.

The Harlans are suspected of trying to sell marijuana in the parking lot of the Galleria Boulevard restaurant on July 5 to a group of men from the Bay Area. The buyers robbed the sellers at gunpoint and drove away, police said.

By Sam Stanton and Kim Minugh
sstanton@sacbee.com

At least one Roseville police officer, two Sacramento sheriff's deputies and a Sacramento police officer have been implicated in the ongoing federal investigation into whether area police illegally sold weapons, officials and sources told The Bee today.

Roseville police Sgt. Cal Walstad confirmed to The Bee this morning that one officer had been placed on administrative leave Thursday, the same day that federal agents conducted at least four searches of officers' homes in the Sacramento area.

Walstad would not reveal the identity of the officer or give further details.

The Bee previously has confirmed that two deputies also were placed on leave as a result of the investigation, which the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has confirmed is continuing.

A transient man pleaded guilty today to second-degree murder of a fellow transient in 2000, according to the Placer County District Attorney's Office.

Michael Elijah Adams is scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 15 for killing 46-year-old John Semler Owens, whose body was found on a gravel service road in Roseville on Jan. 21, 2000, according to a news release from the DA's office. Owens had suffered blunt force trauma to his head.

Early in the investigation, police identified a suspect who gave the name Michael A. Thomas. Police later learned his real name was Michael Elijah Adams, but were not able to find him, the release states.

Roseville police are looking for two male subjects in a home invasion robbery that occurred Wednesday evening.

The incident occurred at a residence on the 1200 block of Glenbrook Avenue at about 9:20 p.m. Wednesday, according to the Roseville police officials.

The male occupant heard a knock at the door and when he answered two men armed with handguns entered the home. They then used zip-ties to restrain the couple and a small child, and searched the home.

The body of a Roseville man missing for more than a week has been found in unincorporated Placer County.

Brent Bell, 49, left his home near Woodcreek Golf Club Oct. 16, riding his white Trek cruiser-style bicycle. He reportedly has been depressed about personal issues and may have taken a handgun with him, according to a Roseville police department new release.

Bell's family was concerned that he may have ridden his bicycle to a remote area and harmed himself, police said.

The California Highway Patrol seeks information from anyone who witnessed a fatal single-vehicle crash Friday afternoon on Fair Oaks Boulevard.

Robert Jacobs, 32, of Roseville was driving a 1998 Chevy Cavalier westbound on Fair Oaks Boulevard west of Los Molinos Way, in Arden Arcade, about 2:27 p.m. He was traveling about 40 mph, and for unknown reasons, his vehicle drifted onto the right shoulder and into a drainage ditch, according to a CHP news release. The impact caused the vehicle to become airborne and overturn.

The Cavalier struck a cinder block mailbox, then landed on its roof. Although Jacobs was wearing a seat belt, he sustained fatal injuries.

The Roseville Police Department is searching for a west Roseville man who was last seen Sunday evening.

Brent Bell (pictured), 49, left his home near Woodcreek Golf Club about 6 p.m., riding his white Trek cruiser-style bicycle. His family hasn't seen or heard from him since, and he didn't go to work Monday. He reportedly has been depressed about personal issues and may have taken a handgun with him, according to a Police Department new release.

Bell's family is concerned that he may have ridden his bicycle to a remote area and harmed himself, police said.

Roseville police hope they have stopped a series of snack shack burglaries with the arrest of suspects at Woodcreek High School.

Officers responded to a burglary in progress at the school at 2:15 a.m. Saturday. Four weekend burglaries or attempted break-ins had occurred at the snack shack since Sept. 3.

Roseville police say that robbers tied up employees of a Outback Steakhouse and smashed cellphones before making off with money from the safe.

The restaurant robbery occurred around midnight Saturday as the employees were closing up the steakhouse at 181 North Sunrise Avenue. The robbers, one who was armed, were described as two white men with stockings over their faces. One of the robbers appeared to have facial hair and wore a tan jacket.

A robbery at 4:30 a.m. today may be related to the steakhouse stick-up, police said. Just as employees arrived at the McDonald's at 120 Harding Blvd., they were confronted by an armed man demanding money from the safe. He disabled a telephone before leaving.

By Whitney Mountain
wmountain@sacbee.com

The Roseville Police Department arrested four males, two adults and two juveniles, Wednesday afternoon on suspicion of burglarizing at least two residences Wednesday.

Officers are also investigating to see if they are connected with a string of other residential burglaries in west Roseville.

Police responded to an emergency call at 2 p.m. Wednesday by a man who had interrupted a burglary-in-progress in his home near Junction Boulevard and Woodcreek Oaks Boulevard.

A rash of burglaries hit the west side of Roseville on Tuesday, prompting police to ask for help in catching the thieves.

Between 10 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. four homes were hit in Roseville -- three in Sun City and one in the Longmeadow Village area north of Blue Oaks Boulevard, according to a press release from the Roseville police department.

Roseville police have released a man initially suspected of trying to lure a child into his vehicle Thursday afternoon.

At 5:04 p.m., officers responded Thursday to Catherine Gates Elementary School on Trehowell Drive regarding a report that a man had tried to lure a child into his white van.

A man arrested Friday morning in Roseville on suspicion of attempting to lure a child into his vehicle Thursday evening has been released without being charged.

After Roseville police interviewed the man and verified his whereabouts at the time of the incident, they determined that he was not involved.

Roseville police received a report at 5:04 p.m. Thursday that a man in a white van had tried to get a child to enter his vehicle at Catherine Gates Elementary School on Trehowell Drive. Unable to find the suspect upon arrival, police sent out a description, and people in the area identified the man. After police established probable cause, the man who was later released was taken into custody without incident.

Roseville police said in a news release that they have received several reports of strangers talking to children or offering them rides in the vicinity of schools the past few weeks. The descriptions of the strangers and their vehicles has varied widely. The department asks that parents remain vigilant over their children as they continue to investigate the reports.

Roseville police have arrested a man suspected of trying to lure a child into his vehicle Thursday afternoon.

At 5:04 p.m., officers responded to Catherine Gates Elementary School on Trehowell Drive regarding a report that a man had tried to lure a child into his white van. Police were unable to locate the suspect at that time, but they broadcast a description to neighboring law enforcement agencies.

With the assistance of neighboring agencies, the man was identified and officers developed probable cause to make an arrest, according to a Police Department news release. Roseville officers took him into custody this morning without incident.

By Rick Daysog

rdaysog@sacbee.com

A federal grand jury has indicted six Sacramento area residents in connection with a mortgage fraud scheme that allegedly bilked $1.8 million from several banks.

Angela Shavlovsky, 52, of Sacramento; Vitaliy Tuzman, 31, of West Sacramento; 34-year-old Alexander Kokhanets of Roseville; 38-year-old Boris Murzak and 40-year-old Zinaida Murzak, both of Sacramento; and Valeri Mysin, 31, of Citrus Heights were charged Wednesday with conspiracy to commit mail fraud, according to the U.S. Attorney's office.

It will cost $26,000 to replace copper wire stolen from soccer field lights in Roseville. A reward was offered Friday to find the thief.

Someone stripped the copper wire from light poles at Maidu Regional Park soccer fields during the night of Sept. 22 or early morning of Sept 23. It is estimated that it will take two to four weeks to repair the lights.

Utility officials pledged to find the cause of a natural gas fire in the street that forced the closure of the Cirby-Way-Riverside Avenue intersection in Roseville.

The fire has been extinguished but the investigation into what caused the flames to lick through cracks in the roadway still has to be undertaken.

"We are committed to doing a thorough investigation into how and why this fire took place," said PG&E spokeswoman Nicole Liebelt. "Because the investigation has not yet begun, a cause has not been determined."

By Ed Fletcher
efletcher@sacbee.com

Roseville police say parents and children should be on alert for a suspicious man approaching children near local schools.

Over the past few days, the department has received reports of man offering a child a ride or trying to get a child to approach his vehicle. Three of the incidents were reported in the West Park area near Junction Elementary School. A fourth incident was reported near Thomas Jefferson School on Central Park Drive, according to a
Roseville Police Department news release.

"We are taking it seriously," said Dee Dee Gunther, department spokeswoman. "But we really don't know at this point whether these sightings are related or not. We are just asking people to be alert."

An American flag belonging to a Vietnam veteran was splattered with a black fluid this week in Placer County.

Lonnie Brooks, 64, said on Wednesday he found that the large flag had been desecrated with a black substance.

Roseville Police arrested two men Tuesday who are suspected of committing recent residential burglaries in west Roseville on Woodhaven Circle, Road Runner Drive and Waterford Glen Circle.

Several residents in the Crocker Ranch neighborhood called police to report suspicious people knocking on doors. When someone answered the door, the two men told residents they were looking for a lost dog.

A residential burglary was later reported at Woodhaven Circle, which is in the same area.

Two Roseville brothers have been sentenced in federal court for downloading child porn.

Sam I. Coburn, 34, and Matthew J. Coburn, 27, were sentenced today by U.S. District Judge John A. Mendez to five years in prison to be followed by 10 years of supervised release. They will also be required to register as sex offenders.

The brothers pleaded guilty to receiving child pornography on June 14.

A dog door in a garage was just big enough for a burglar to squeeze through into a Roseville home.

Roseville police said that during the daylight hours on Friday a burglar went to a home in the 1600 block of Roadrunner Drive, first breaking a lock on the side gate to the backyard. The burglar then entered the garage through a large dog door before prying open the human door into the house.

Once inside the home near Junction Boulevard and Baseline Road, the burglar took video game consoles, video games, a laptop and other electronic items.

Vandals broke windows and dented nearly two dozen vehicles overnight at a Roseville used car lot.

Police were dispatched to the car sales lot in the 300 block of Riverside about 3 a.m. Sunday on a report that vandalism had just occurred. A witness said that four or five males in dark clothing were hitting cars with sticks or bats.

The suspects were last seen running north on Riverside Avenue, but police were not able to find them.

In all, police counted 21 vehicles with broken windows or dents. Police have no motive for the damage.

A 57-year-old Roseville man was arrested Wednesday night after he allegedly struck a fire truck and narrowly missed a firefighter while driving drunk, according to authorities.

Thomas Rolland Michael was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence and driving with a suspended license, according to a Roseville Fire Department news release. Michael was booked into the Placer County Jail in lieu of $50,000 bail, the release states.

Firefighters were at an emergency call at 707 Sunrise Boulevard when a man drove his Mazda sedan through the parking lot, struck a parked ladder truck and narrowly missed a firefighter on foot, according to the release.

The firefighter took the driver's keys, and then held the man until police arrived.

The release states that there were no injuries and only minor damage to the ladder truck.

A Roseville man was identified as the motorcyclist who crashed after a police chase last night.

The California Highway Patrol said that Erick Von Schelske, 42, died at the scene on Stanford Ranch Road when his motorcycle hit a tree.

A CHP press release said that at about 10 p.m. Wednesday night an oficer saw a motorcyclist traveling at a high rate of speed on Galleria Boulevard. The officer tried to pull him over, but the motorcyclist sped away, according to the CHP.

Schelske lost control and his motorcycle struck a tree in the center divider of Stanford Ranch Road, south of Cobblestone Drive, in Rocklin. Stanford Ranch Road was closed for about 5 hours for the crash investigation.

A Sacramento man has been arrested in connection with the burglary of a Roseville house that was listed for sale, after the victim found a water heater taken from the home advertised for sale on Craigslist.

Roseville police reported that over the weekend, an unoccupied home listed for sale in the Stonebridge area was burglarized. A new tankless water heater, still in the box, was taken from the garage along with contractor's tools.

The victim, a contractor who had been remodeling the house, searched Craigslist for the stolen property and found a tankless water heater matching the one that stolen listed for sale.

A Roseville woman was knocked to the ground, hit with a soda bottle and her necklace stolen by two males who attacked her from behind.

The young woman, who was having trouble sleeping, went for a walk in the 1800 block of Eureka Road about 1 a.m. Tuesday. She was knocked down and her silver necklace ripped away.

The victim was able to run from her attackers and call police. She was treated for scratches and abrasions at the hospital.

Roseville firefighters have stopped an ammonia leak from a tanker car in Roseville.

The leak was reported about 2 a.m. by Union Pacific workers who smelled the ammonia release in the JR Davis rail yard. The fire department's hazardous material experts stopped the small leak by replacing a gasket.

Although Roseville residents might have smelled the anhydrous ammonia, the concentration of the gas never increased to dangerous levels outside the railyard, firefighters said in a press release.

Photo courtesy City of Roseville.

Police said a man armed with a pellet gun tried to steal money from a Roseville bank.

Police said John Lubeck, 20, of Roseville was arrested on suspicion of robbing the Bank of America, 4012 Foothills Blvd. Police said that he entered the bank just before 6 p.m. Friday and and told customers to get out.

He then allegedly pointed a gun at bank employees, police said, demanding money from cash drawers and the vault.

The first officer on scene could see through a bank window a robber armed with a handgun. The robber also saw the officer and immediately gave up, handing over a pellet gun designed to look like a Colt pistol.

A Roseville babysitter has been arrested on suspicion of scalding a small child with hot water as a form of discipline.

Samuel Charles Flores (photo right), 23, was arrested by Roseville police on suspicion of child abuse and willfully causing injury to a child.

The owner of Roseville gym was sentenced today to five months in prison for workers compensation fraud.

Nicki Lee Buxmann, 48, of Lake County was sentenced in Sacramento by U.S. District Judge Garland E. Burrell Jr. for making a false statement or fraud to obtain federal employee's compensation. Buxmann pleaded guilty to the charge Jan. 28. Her prison term is to be followed by 36 months of supervised release, including five months of home detention. She also was ordered to pay $104,834.57 in restitution.

According to court document, Buxmann owned and operated the TNT Takeover/MMA Boxing gym in Roseville while receiving federal workers' compensation benefits from the Department of Labor relating to injuries she claimed to have sustained while working as a letter carriers for the U.S. Postal Service.

A Roseville building contractor pleaded guilty today in Sacramento to defrauding investors.

Leo Wheeler, 56, pleaded guilty before U. S. District Judge Garland E. Burrell Jr. to one count of mail fraud.

In his plea, Wheeler admitted to defrauding more than 10 investors of hundreds of thousands of dollars by submitting approximately 85 fraudulent invoices for work he falsely claimed he had performed on a 30-lot subdivision known as Creekside Oaks Estates in Lake County. Wheeler used three fictitious companies - Kenneth Gutman Trucking, SNC Solutions and California Maintenance - to funnel funds to himself and to other projects in which he was involved, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

A Roseville intermediate school student told authorities she was grabbed across the throat by an unknown man while walking to school Thursday morning, according to a Roseville Police Department news release.

Roseville police are investigating the incident, which reportedly occurred around 8:45 a.m. as the student walked to Eich Intermediate School on a dirt trail that runs along Linda Creek through an open area between Rocky Ridge Drive and the school campus on Sierra Gardens Drive, according to the release.

The student told authorities she was walking on the trail when a man came up from behind her, put his arm across her throat in a choke hold, then released her and ran away, the release states. Police stated the student had bruising on her neck but did not report other injuries.

The Placer County District Attorney's Office has concluded that an off-duty sheriff's deputy did not commit a crime when he intercepted and shot a man who was being chased by Rocklin police.

The District Attorney's Office announced today that it has completed its review of the May 29 shooting of Sergey Pautov, 22 of Rancho Cordova, by Placer County Sheriff's Sgt. Vaness Bogardus. The review was based on information provided in Rocklin and Roseville police department reports, as well as an analysis of California law, according to a District Attorney's Office news release.

These materials established that officers, including Sgt. Bogardus, were advised that Pautov was a suspect who was wanted for a recent burglary and auto theft. Sgt. Bogardus and other officers were also aware that Pautov had been evading capture while driving a stolen vehicle in a reckless manner that endangered the public, including twice driving on the wrong side of the road, officials said. Pautov eventually abandoned the vehicle and began to run away.

Two Sacramento region CHP airborne officers have been recognized for outstanding work.

Pilot Jeff Barbao and flight officer Jonathon Pierce have won the fixed wing operator of the year award sponsored by aircraft-maker GippsAero for the impact of their work.

Barbao and Pierce are assigned to the CHP Valley Division air unit based in Auburn. The division covers an area 160 miles in length and 130 miles wide, including Sacramento, Stockton and South Lake Tahoe.

Roseville developer and fast-food entrepreneur Abe Alizadeh has had his contractors license revoked by state authorities.

The Contractors State License Board officially revoked the license of Stonegate Construction Inc. on Monday. Alizadeh is the head of the company, according to the licensing board.

A press release said that Alizadeh accepted terms of a settlement after a state investigation concluded that he had diverted construction funds and failed to pay subcontractors and material suppliers.

A 38-year-old Roseville man has been arrested on suspicion of committing sexual acts on customers while working as a tattoo artist.

Placer County District Attorney's investigators and Roseville Police detectives served an arrest warrant Monday on Zechariah Carr (pictured) at his Roseville home.

Carr was arraigned Wednesday in Placer County Superior Court on charges of committing sexual acts upon at least two customers at tattoo studios where he was employed. He has worked at numerous tattoo studios in Placer and Sacramento counties, according to a Placer County District Attorney's Office news release.

The Roseville Police Department is accepting applications for its upcoming Citizen's Police Awareness Academy.

Academy participants will be introduced to concepts of community-oriented policing and problem solving, and will receive an overview of police department policies and procedures, according to the academy application form.

Participants will learn about the department's investigations, records and K-9 units, as well as topics of search and seizure, gangs and narcotics, according to the application.

By Ed Fletcher
efletcher@sacbee.com

With three convictions already on his rap sheet, a Roseville bank robber was sentenced late last month to life in prison, the Placer County District Attorney's office reported today.

Edward Sciosciole, 49, was convicted of the April 7, 2010 robbery of a Roseville Wells Fargo bank in which he made off with $3,800. Sciosciole was identified using the bank's security cameras.

Sciosciole was on parole at the time of the incident for a pair of 2005 robberies of Rocklin businesses.

Firefighters respond to the fire at the Westfield Galleria in Roseville on Oct. 21, 2010. (Andy Alfaro/Bee file, 2010)

By Sam Stanton
sstanton@sacbee.com

Alexander Piggee, the troubled 24-year-old who set the $55 million blaze at the Westfield Galleria in Roseville last October, was sentenced this morning in federal court to 15 years in prison after expressing remorse for his crime.

Piggee (photo right) pleaded guilty to two counts of arson in March in a deal that avoided a trial in the case. He also faces 72 months of supervision following his release from prison.

The blaze destroyed part of the mall just as the holiday shopping season began. The fire, which began in a backpack Piggee left in a video game store closet, roared out of control after officials turned off the mall sprinkler system because of miscommunication.

Roseville police are searching for a man suspected of robbing a Chase Bank branch this afternoon.

The suspect allegedly entered the bank in the 1800 block of Douglas Boulevard shortly before 1:45 p.m., and presented a note to a teller demanding money, said police spokeswoman Dee Dee Gunther. He mentioned a gun, but no weapon was seen, according to a police department news release.

The suspect was given an undisclosed amount of money and reportedly fled on foot eastbound on Douglas Boulevard, Gunther said. Responding officers did not locate him.

The City of Roseville invites its residents to celebrate the 28th annual National Night Out Aug. 2.

The city is taking part in the national program that aims to increase awareness about crime prevention, support local crime prevention programs, and build partnerships among police departments and the communities they serve.

The Roseville Fire Department amended an account of its response to a Wednesday two-alarm house fire following a post-incident analysis Thursday morning, a department official said.

The fire broke out around 12:30 p.m., in the 1800 block of Finch Drive, the department reported. Initial reports were than an elderly woman was trapped by the fire.

When rescue personnel arrived on scene, they found the woman already out of the house, with citizens lifting her over a fence into the front yard, said Jeff Carman, assistant chief of operations for the fire department.

Roseville firefighters rescued a woman from her burning home in the 1800 block of Finch Drive earlier this afternoon, the fire department reported.

Fire crews were called to the house fire around 12:39 p.m., and arrived at the scene about five minutes later, said Jeff Carman, assistant chief of operations for the Roseville Fire Department. Initial reports were that an elderly woman was trapped inside and yelling for help.

Firefighters immediately made entered the home and located the woman in the living room, with her exit blocked by flames, Carman said. They removed her from the home.

A Placer County Sheriff's Department air support unit conducted a rescue Tuesday night of a kayaker who paddled off a 30-foot waterfall and sustained severe back injuries on landing, the department reported.

The 27-year-old man was kayaking on the north fork of the American River in a remote area of the Tahoe National Forest when he went over the waterfall, according to a department news release. Other kayakers pulled him from the water and hiked out of the canyon to call for help, the release states.

"The way he went off, his boat apparently hit flat on the water, and that's like hitting concrete," said sheriff's department Sgt. Van Bogardus, who piloted the department's air support unit rescue helicopter.

Auburn police said the man being chased by police into downtown last night was eventually arrested.

Police said this morning that an Auburn Police Department officer recognized Neal John Bugnatto, 28, of Auburn about 10:45 p.m. on High Street near Cleveland Avenue. Police said that he was wanted and had an outstanding warrant.

During a short interview, police said that Bugnatto provided a false name and then ran away. A short chase ensued into downtown Auburn's central square area.

That's where police said they caught up with Bugnatto and arrested him. He was taken to Placer County Jail where police booked him on the outstanding warrant and suspicion of providing false information to a peace officer, resisting and possession of methamphetamine.

By Matt Kawahara
mkawahara@sacbee.com

One person died and another sustained burn injuries in a fire that engulfed a multi-unit residential structure in Placer County on Wednesday night, the Placer County Sheriff's Department reported.

Fire crews and sheriff's deputies were dispatched around 7:30 p.m., to the structure in the 200 block of Ponderosa Way in the unincorporated area of Colfax, said sheriff's department Lt. John Savage. Upon arriving, they found the structure well-involved with flames and learned there may have been occupants inside one or two of the units, Savage said.

As crews battled the fire, one victim emerged from the structure with burn injuries, Savage said. That victim was airlifted to the UC Davis Medical Center for treatment.

The victims, a husband and wife, called the sheriff's dispatch center at 3:07 p.m. to report that three men, one of whom they knew, had entered their Dry Creek Road home and stolen marijuana and other items. They reported that the men brandished a gun during the robbery and told the couple to stay in a confined area of the home as they left, according to a Sheriff's Office news release.

At 3:25 p.m., deputies spotted the three suspects driving westbound on Interstate 80 near Douglas Boulevard in Roseville. The car was stopped on the side of the freeway and the suspects were taken into custody without incident. Inside the car, deputies found a handgun that matched the description of the gun used during the robbery. Officials said some property also was discovered.

Rocklin police have arrested a man suspected of early morning burglaries on Sunset Boulevard.

Police said just after 2 a.m. today a burglar alarm was tripped at a pizza parlor in the 2200 block of Sunset Boulevard. When officers arrived at the business, they saw that a window had been broken for entrance.

The business owner arrived and viewed the burglary security video, which showed a white man with a medium build, tank top and black shorts. He also had a tattoo.

Roseville police on Tuesday arrested three men in connection with a marijuana robbery and are looking for a fourth suspect.

About 5:15 p.m. Tuesday, three Sacramento men met with four other men in the parking lot of a Galleria Boulevard restaurant to conduct a marijuana sale, according to a Police Department news release. Instead of paying, the four suspects robbed the Sacramento men of their marijuana at gunpoint, then fled in a black Toyota sedan, police said.

A Roseville police officer spotted the vehicle on westbound Interstate 80 and followed it to the dead end of Kenroy Lane, off Riverside Avenue. Two of the passengers got out of the car and fled on foot. The other two remained with the car and were taken into custody.

Auburn police have arrested a woman on suspicion of purse snatching and are asking if other people have had their handbag grabbed by the same suspect.

Shelly Jump (left), 44, of Auburn was arrested Thursday. Police said they believe she attempted to steal a 24-year-old woman's purse on May 17 along Auburn Ravine Road.

The victim was able to hold onto her purse and run away. An investigation by Detective Dustin McLaughlin led to Jump as the person authorities beleive tried to steal the purse.

McLaughlin arrested Jump near Highway 49 and Elm Avenue on suspicion of attempted robbery and resisting arrest. He asks that anyone with a similar experience involving Jump contact him at (530) 823-4237.

Auburn police have arrested another suspect thought to be involved in the stabbing of a man who tried to chase down two people he believed had broken into his car.

Gavin Rasmussen (left), 20, was arrested after turning himself into authorities at the Placer County Jail on Wednesday. Police earlier arrested Joseph Montgomery, 19.

Police say the incident began Friday before 11 p.m. when a 19-year-old Cool resident discovered his vehicle had been broken into while it was parked. The victim saw a car driving away from the scene and gave chase in his own vehicle.

Roseville police said DNA evidence left behind on a water bottle by a bank robber has led them to a suspect.

Detectives arrested Shawn Todd David Knuckey, 41, of Sacramento, last week on suspicion of robbery. Police believe that on May 14, 2010 he held up the River City Bank inside the Bel Air supermarket, 1039 Sunrise Ave.

A robber wearing a baseball cap and a San Francisco Giants shirt presented a bank clerk a note that demanded money. He was given cash and then left the store.

By Ed Fletcher
efletcher@sacbee.com

The Placer County District Attorney's office announced today that they have made an arrest in January 2000 Roseville homicide.

Michael Elijah Adams, a 44-year-old transient suspected of being a member of a violent train-hopping gang, was arrested May 17 in Clark County, Wash., on unrelated charges.

Adams now faces charges related to the January 2000 murder of John Semler Owens, a 46-year-old transient freight-train rider. Owens was found dead Jan. 21 on a gravel service road near the Union Pacific Railroad tracks.

The Bee first reported his connection to the Roseville murder June 4, but the DA's office refused to talk about the case and ordered the Roseville Police Department not to talk about the case.

According to the DA's office, Adams agreed to be extradited to California.

By Ed Fletcher
efletcher@sacbee.com

Roseville Police are looking for witnesses to a late-night stabbing that occurred early this month in Old Town Roseville.

Just before 2 a.m. June 4, a 21-year-old Olivehurst man was assaulted by five or six men in the 300 block of Lincoln Street. One of the attackers stabbed the victim in the back. The injuries were not life-threatening.

According to witnesses the victim had an earlier altercation with another man at Bar Basic.

The police are looking for anyone who might have been in the area, especially those who may have taken photos. Anyone with information is asked to call Det. Marc Kelley at (916) 774-5073 or crime stoppers at (916) 783-7867. Callers can remain anonymous and may be eligible for a cash reward if the information they provide leads to an arrest.

By Brad Branan
bbranan@sacbee.com

A young boy was killed this morning when his father accidently hit him in the driveway of their Roseville home, police said.

The man was backing up his sport utility vehicle in the driveway of his home on the 300 block of Hickory Street and didn't see the boy, said Lt. Marc Glynn of the Roseville Police Department. The boy was about 3 years old.

No charges are expected. "This is just a tragic accident," Glynn said.

The father was backing up the vehicle so the family could take a trip, and the boy apparently followed him outside without his father knowing, Glynn said.

By Max Ehrenfreund

A 17-year-old boy was the victim of a shooting and of a vehicular assault in Lincoln last night, according to a press release from the Lincoln Police Department.

The youth's single wound, in a lower extremity, was not life-threatening. He was treated and released at Sutter Roseville Medical Center.

A Lincoln woman, Lavada Keen, 37, was arrested on charges of assault with a deadly weapon and harboring or concealing a felon.

Lieutenant David Ibarra explained that an argument broke out between the two juveniles outside a home in the 900 block of First Street. Keen attempted to run down the victim before the suspect shot the victim, according to Ibarra. Multiple shots were fired around 10:45 p.m.

Keen then allegedly fled with the suspect in her vehicle. She later returned to the scene and was arrested without incident.

Officers have not located the 16-year-old shooting suspect, or his weapon.

Police have made a third arrest in connection with a shooting and robbery in Rocklin early Sunday morning. They are no longer seeking additional suspects.

The arrest last night concludes a round-the-clock, interagency investigation that lasted several days.

The Rocklin Police Department has arrested a second person and is looking for a third in connection with a shooting early Sunday at the intersection of Sunset and Blue Oaks boulevards.

Police say the shooting occurred at 1:57 a.m. and the victim drove himself to Sutter-Roseville Medical Center, where he was treated for a gunshot wound to the neck.

Jamie Payton, 28, of Weimar was arrested 5:30 p.m. Sunday and booked into Placer County Jail on suspicion of attempted murder and possession of a controlled substance. Detectives seized two vehicles related to the shooting and processed them for evidence, according to a Police Department news release.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

Two Roseville brothers pleaded guilty today in federal court in Sacramento to receipt and distribution of child pornography.

According to court documents, in early 2009, law enforcement officials identified computers at the home of Sam I. Coburn, 34, and Matthew J. Coburn, 27, that were trading files of child pornography through an Internet file-sharing service. When law enforcement agents executed a search warrant at the Coburn's home, they found multiple computers with pictures and videos showing the sexual molestation of children, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

Several thousand image files and 573 video files of the sexual molestation of children were on a computer shared by the brothers, officials said. On a laptop owned by Sam Coburn, agents found 242 pictures and seven videos of child pornography that he had downloaded between March 2005 and December 2007.

Rocklin police are still searching for suspects in an early-morning shooting.

Just before 2 a.m., police received a report of a shooting at Sunset and Blue Oaks boulevards, the department said in a news release.

The unidentified victim had driven himself to the Sutter Roseville Medical Center, where he was admitted for treatment, the release said.

Officers searched the area but found no suspects. They canvassed nearby neighborhoods for other victims but found none.

Calls to the Rocklin Police Department seeking additional details were not returned.

Anyone with information about the case is asked to call Rocklin police at (916) 625-5400.

A 34-year-old woman was arrested Thursday on suspicion of forgery, identity theft and narcotics violations after police and California state parole officers conducted a parole search of an Auburn residence.

Parole officers entered the residence on Easy Way in Auburn and detained Michelle Patton, who was the subject of the search, and her friend, Timothy Briggs, 31, according to an Auburn Police Department news release.

Parole officers informed Auburn police that, during the search of Patton's bedroom, they found narcotics paraphernalia and other suspicious items.

An Auburn police officer found several items of identification that did not belong to Patton, as well as forged money orders, according to the news release. A detective recognized the forged money orders from a case investigated earlier this year. The detective also reported that Patton displayed symptoms of being under the influence methamphetamine.

The Roseville Police Department Traffic Unit has scheduled a DUI/Driver's License checkpoint for June 17 at an undisclosed location in the city, according to a police department release.

Officers will check drivers for signs of impairment and for valid driver's licenses. The checkpoint will be held from 8 p.m. June 17 until 2:30 a.m. the following morning, according to the release.

The CHP will be targeting speeders with radar enforcement today on Interstate 80 in the Sierra Nevada.

California Highway Patrol officers in the Gold Run, Auburn and Truckee areas will be focusing on speeders and people who talk on their cellphones while driving. Teams using radar will be working throughout the day.

"Our message is simple," said Gold Run Lt. Commander John Arrabit. "We want to remind motorists to drive safely this summer so that their loved ones won't have to drive to the hospital or mortuary."

The anti-speeding campaign today will be replayed several times throughout the summer.

In addition, officers from the Valley Division's Commercial Enforcement group will conduct vehicle inspections on big rigs.

By Matt Kawahara
mkawahara@sacbee.com

The man accused of killing three people at a Loomis home over the weekend entered not guilty pleas to all charges at his arraignment in Placer County Superior Court on Wednesday.

Jeremy Ray Baker, 36, of Roseville, was formally charged with three counts of murder and one count of possessing a firearm silencer.

He was also charged with a special allegation of personally and intentionally discharging a firearm causing death or great bodily injury, and a special circumstances allegation of multiple murder.

The latter allegation could make Baker eligible for the death penalty, although that decision has yet to be made, said Placer County Assistant District Attorney Jeff Wilson.

A Loomis woman is in Placer County Jail accused of poisoning her husband.

Rachel Melody Bettencourt (left), 53, was booked early today on suspicion of willful poisoning and inflicting corporal punishment on a spouse. She is being held on $100,000 bail.

Placer County Sheriff's deputies were called to Sutter Roseville Medical Center at 8:30 p.m. Monday at the request of South Placer Fire Department officials. Firefighters had responded to Bettencourt's Tudsbury Road home and found the situation suspicious, according to Sheriff's Department news release.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

Roseville police will continue their investigation Tuesday into the death of a 44-year-old man who was found shot in an office park on Industrial Avenue this afternoon.

Sgt. Daniel Wanamaker said police received a report of a disturbance at 3:19 p.m. While officers were en route they were told that gunshots had been heard coming from the offices of Skim X, an extreme sports company in the 8200 block of Industrial Avenue.

Wanamaker said officers established a perimeter around the building at the rear of the business park. Armed with shields and rifles, they entered the warehouse-style building at 3:55 p.m. and found Christopher Dale Northam dead with at least one gunshot wound.

By Darrell Smith
dvsmith@sacbee.com

A burglary suspect remains in a Roseville hospital today after being shot Sunday by an off-duty sheriff's deputy who had intercepted the man as he was being chased by Rocklin police.

The Roseville Police Department, which is investigating the incident, said Sergey Pautov, 22, of Rancho Cordova was listed in fair condition today.

The burglary suspect was admitted to Sutter Roseville Medical Center after the shooting. Rockin police said he will be arrested on suspicion of felony burglary, reckless evading and possession of a stolen vehicle.

By Tony Bizjak

tbizjak@sacbee.com

An off-duty Placer County sheriff's deputy shot and wounded a man believed to be fleeing police after robbing a Rocklin convenience store Sunday afternoon, authorities said.

The shooting took place at Cambria Park in Roseville, Lt. Jamie Knox of the Rocklin Police Department said.

The Sacramento man investigators call the "Goatman Bandit" was sentenced to prison Thursday for a series of bank robberies.

Federal District Court Judge Kimberly J. Mueller sentenced John Raymond Porter, 42, to eight years, four months in prison.

Porter was convicted of four counts of bank robbery, though he admitted to committing nine bank robberies, a news release from the federal prosecutor states.

The bank robberies Porter admitted to committing occurred in 2008 and 2009 in Roseville, Auburn, Citrus Heights, El Dorado Hills and Cameron Park.

Porter's sobriquet was bestowed by Sacramento Violent Crimes Task Force investigaors who noted the crook's goatee.

Rewards are being offered in an effort to stop a flood of plumbing equipment thefts in Roseville.

Thieves have stolen backflow valves 46 times in the city between October and early May. That has cost property owners about $81,000 for equipment repair and replacement.

The devices prevent contaminated water from backing up into drinking water supply. Thieves generally go onto a commercial property late at night and first turn off the water supply.

An autopsy has revealed that a toddler found dead in February inside her Roseville home suffered from rare heart condition.

The 16-month-old girl, Isabella Michelle Heredia, died Feb. 11 inside her Hearthside Way home. Police and fire crews went to the child's home, responding to reports that she was not breathing. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

No obvious signs of trauma were reported. Investigators could not immediately determine how or why she died.

A man has been sentenced under the state's Three Strikes law for failure to register as a sex offender, Placer County prosecutors reported.

Leroy Dale Holsey was sentenced last Friday by Placer County Superior Court Judge Mark Curry to 28 years to life. Holsey, according to a press release from the Placer County District Attorney, had prior convictions for sexual assault, robbery and molesting children.

The offense for which he was sentenced was Holsey's third conviction for failing to register as a sex offender. Holsey came to the attention of police when they responded to a report that he was blocking the path of girl bicyclists in a Roseville alley and a previous report where he was suspected of peeking into a neighbor's home.

Officers discovered Holsey's criminal history and failure to register as a sex offender in Roseville.

Concluding a case launched by law enforcement officials in Germany, a Roseville man was sentenced today to more than 10 years in prison for receipt of child pornography.

U.S. District Judge John A. Mendez sentenced Thomas Lee Neal, 42, to 10 years and three months in prison, to be followed by 10 years of supervised release for receipt and possession of child pornography, according to a federal Department of Justice news release. Neal pleased guilty to the charges March 1.

According to court documents, in May 2009, German law enforcement officials identified Neal as an individual who had uploaded to a file-sharing website in Roseville a video of child pornography. When U.S. agents executed a search warrant on Neal's house, they seized computers that contained images of child pornography.

A 30-year-old Roseville man has been sentenced to 25 years to life in prison for the kidnap and rape of a 24-year-old woman.

Justin Lee Mitchell was sentenced May 13 in Auburn by Placer County Superior Court Judge Marc S. Curry.

Mitchell pleaded guilty March 30 to kidnapping and rape with a foreign object, according to a Placer County District Attorney's Office news release.

Truckee Truckee police said they chased down and arrested three teens on suspicion of burglary early today.

Officers were called to an apartment complex on Rue Ivy Avenue about 2 a.m. where a resident said several people were trying to break into his home.

When officers arrived three people ran from officers.

One turned and fought officers, but was arrested after a short struggle, police said.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

The city of Roseville will sponsor a variety of free events during Roseville Community Safety Day at the Westfield Galleria on Saturday.

Free activities are scheduled from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Motor officers from agencies statewide will test their skills in challenge courses and speed contests in the Police Motorcycle Skill Competition.

A woman who died early today at a Colfax home in what sheriff's deputies believe was a domestic dispute has been identified as Sarah Burr, 30, of Grass Valley.

Lee Martin Konnerth, 35, described as Burr's boyfriend, was booked into Placer County Jail after he was taken into custody by an off-duty officer. The officer heard gunshots in the vicinity of Catskill Drive, between Weimar and Colfax, and went to the scene to investigate.

The officer found Burr dead on the porch of the home. He took two men into custody at gunpoint until Placer County sheriff's deputies arrived.

Placer County sheriff's officials said a Colfax man was arrested early today on suspicion of homicide in the killing of a woman in a domestic dispute.

Lee Martin Konnerth, 35, was booked into Placer County Jail after he was taken into custody by an off-duty officer. The officer heard gunshots Sunday evening in the vicinity of Catskill Drive between Weimar and Colfax and went to the scene to investigate.

The officer found the woman dead on the porch of the home. He took two men into custody at gunpoint until Placer County Sheriff's deputies arrived.

A masked suspect with a large handgun robbed the Heritage Inn on Rocklin Road of more than $900 Friday, Rocklin police reported.

The assailant entered at about 11 p.m., brandished the gun and demanded cash.

The robber is believed to be a stocky male, between 5 feet 10 inches and 6 feet tall.

A parolee who was reported prowling behind a north Auburn apartment complex and looking in windows was arrested by Placer County Sheriff's deputies early this morning, a sheriff's spokeswoman said today.

Steven Allen Shade (left), 43, refused to comply with the orders of a deputy who chased him from the area behind the Terracina Oaks Apartments, according to a Sheriff's Department news release. When Shade repeatedly ignored the deputy's commands and kept reaching into his pocket, the deputy used his Taser to control Shade, the release states.

An apartment resident called the Sheriff's Department's emergency dispatch center at 5:50 a.m. to report that a man was outside of his rear bedroom window, peering inside. The area behind the apartments is gated and fenced, but officials said Shade entered through a damaged section of fencing.

By Denny Walsh
dwalsh@sacbee.com

A Roseville man pleaded guilty Thursday in federal court to wire fraud and admitted that he and a cohort bilked 22 real estate investors out of nearly $3 million.

Royce Lee Newcomb signed off on a written plea agreement that describes this scheme:

In 2009 and early 2010, he solicited people to purchase real property, primarily foreclosed homes, and directed them to send the money to Contour Escrow Services, operated by Barry Winnett, who was in on the scam and had no license to perform escrow services.

Four people, including two children, suffered minor injuries in a three-vehicle collision that closed Highway 65 near Sheridan for about an hour this morning.

The collision occurred about 7:49 a.m. A black Dodge Charger, driven by a 35-year-old Sheridan woman, was traveling northbound on Highway 65 north of Riosa Road and was slowing from a speed of 55 mph to make a left turn across the southbound lanes into a private driveway, according to a California Highway Patrol news release.

The Charger had its left turn signal on, when a Kenworth big-rig tractor-trailer combination, driven by a 37-year-old Olivehurst woman, approached from behind traveling about 55 mph.

By Denny Walsh
dwalsh@sacbee.com

In an unexpected turn, a Chico man pleaded guilty today in federal court in Sacramento to $21 million in mortgage fraud.

Garret Griffith Gililland III also agreed to testify in the pending mortgage fraud case against Loomis Wealth Solutions.

The Loomis case is the largest mortgage fraud case in the history of the Sacramento region.

Rocklin police are looking for two men in connection with an early morning armed robbery of a convenience store. (Surveillance photo above shows one of the suspects entering the store.)

Officers responded at 2:21 a.m. today to the 7-Eleven store and gas station at 6001 Stanford Ranch Road regarding a robbery that had just occurred.

A store employee told police that two men, one holding a shotgun, had robbed the store. After taking cash, the suspects left in an unknown direction.

Lawyers for a youth pastor who sued the owners of Westfield Galleria at Roseville over free speech say they have resolved his case out of court.

In October, the California Supreme Court denied a Westfield request to review a lower court's ruling that the mall's rules restricting communication among strangers are a violation of free speech.

The appellate court ruled that Westfield's conduct of prohibiting talk among strangers unless it relates to the mall and is approved in advance "are unconstitutional on their face" under the California Constitution's free speech guarantee, according to an appellate opinion.

One person died and another was seriously injured this afternoon in a collision reported about 3:20 p.m. at Auburn Boulevard and College Oak Drive.

Officer Lizz Dutton of the California Highway Patrol said a 33-year-old man was driving southbound on Auburn Boulevard in a Chevrolet 3500 pickup pulling a trailer fully loaded with rock and other debris. He was traveling about 40 mph and approaching College Oak Drive, when a 92-year-old man driving a Ford F10 pickup made a left turn onto College Oak.

The Chevy 3500 pickup struck the F10 on the passenger side. The F10 hit a curb and turned over on the driver's said.

By Matt Kawahara
mkawahara@sacbee.com

The California Highway Patrol has identified the victim of a Monday afternoon collision in south Placer County near Roseville.

Robert Ortiz, 49, of Roseville, died after his 2006 Ford Ranger collided head-on with a 2005 Ford F-250 pickup being driven by Bethany Sperling, 50, of Carmichael, at about 5:05 p.m. on Baseline Road near Walerga Road, according to a CHP news release.

Sperling was airlifted to Roseville Sutter Medical Center after the crash with major injuries, the CHP reported.

Roseville police will conduct a DUI checkpoint Saturday, at an undisclosed location from 9 p.m. to 2 a.m., the Roseville Police Department reported.

Officers will check drivers for signs of alcohol and drug impairment, and will also check drivers' licenses, according to a police department release. Those found to be driving impaired could face jail, vehicle storage fees, license suspension, fines and DUI classes, the release states.

The checkpoint is being conducted with grant funding from the California Office of Traffic Safety.

Over the past three years, DUI collisions in Roseville have led to eight deaths and resulted in 122 injury crashes, according to the release.

Q: What happened in the road-rage case involving Pat Walsh of KFBK? - Anonymous, Sacramento

A: Two men were charged with misdemeanor battery in the alleged road-rage attack last year on KFBK sportscaster Pat Walsh, according to the Placer County District Attorney's Office.

John Patrick O'Neill, 52, and his son, Cory Taylor O'Neill, 23, both of Newcastle, face a May 2 trial, court records show.

A man died and a woman was seriously injured late this afternoon in a collision in south Placer County near Roseville.

California Highway Patrol spokesman Terence Sims said a woman driving a Ford F250 truck was westbound on Baseline Road near Walerga Road shortly after 5 p.m. when her vehicle drifted into the eastbound lane and collided with a smaller eastbound pickup truck.

The male driver of the eastbound pickup was pronounced dead at the scene, and the woman was taken by air ambulance to Sutter Roseville Medical Center with major injuries, Sims said. The name of the driver who died has not been released pending notification of family.

A federal grand jury has indicted an Auburn man for allegedly receiving by fraud more than $210,000 in workers' compensation benefits.

The indictment charges Bruce Lee Cearlock, 74, with theft of government money, mail fraud, and making false statements, according to U.S. Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner.

According to the indictment, starting no later than August 2005, Cearlock made false statements about his employment and income and received more than $210,000 in government workers' comp benefits under the Federal Employees' Compensation Act, Wagner said.

Two Reno men have been arrested after allegedly carrying out a scam to steal items from Auburn's Home Depot.

Scott K. Nelson, 46, (bottom left) and C. Nicholas Psarras, 47, (bottom right) were booked into Placer County Jail on Sunday afternoon after loss prevention employees reported observing Nelson place his homemade UPC stickers over the store's UPC stickers on boxes in his cart. After ringing up his own purchases at the self-service register, Nelson exited the store and was confronted by employees, according to a Placer County Sheriff's Department news release.

Officials said he fought with the employees before being handcuffed and taken back to the store. It was determined that Nelson had paid $97 for items valued at $810, according to the news release.

Three members of the Placer County District Attorney's Office have won awards this month from different organizations.

Two of the winners are prosecutors -- Karin Bjork and Garen Horst - while the third is criminal investigator Brandon Olivera, according to a news release from the DA's office.

Bjork, a 20-year veteran prosecutor and currently a supervising deputy district attorney, was named as a Volunteer of the Year by KidsFirst, a Placer County organization dedicated to the prevention of child abuse, during the group's 13th annual awards presentation on April 1.

Two men arrested in a crime spree in Auburn and Nevada County were arraigned today in Placer County Superior Court in Auburn.

Defendants Dillon James McMahon, 22, of Roseville, and John Cody Adrian, 19, of Colfax appeared before Superior Court Judge Colleen Nichols, according to a Placer County District Attorney's Office spokesman.

McMahon's attorney, Helen Fong of the Placer County Public Defender's Office, entered a not guilty plea on his behalf to two counts of carjacking, one count of kidnapping, one count of kidnapping during commission of a carjacking and one count of conspiracy to commit a crime. All are felonies.

A 63-year-old Newcastle man has been arrested by Auburn police after he allegedly hit two vehicles and a metal gate while driving drunk Tuesday evening, according to an Auburn Police Department news release.

Auburn police officers responded to the area of Sacramento Street and Auburn Folsom Road at about 6 p.m. Tuesday, after receiving a report of a suspected drunk driver who had been involved in multiple hit-and-run collisions, the release states.

Officers found that the suspect had hit two motorists on Auburn Folsom Road and driven through a gate in a residential neighborhood, according to the release. When officers located the suspect and attempted to stop him, he led them on a brief pursuit.

An 81-year-old man, beaten by attempted robbers Monday, has been upgraded to serious condition, Sutter Roseville Hospital officials reported today.

The victim, Jim Wright, was beaten with a tire iron at his home in Nevada County, after he refused to give money to attempted robbers.

Two suspects, Dillon James McMahon, bottom left, 22, of Roseville, and John Cody Adrian, bottom right, 19, of Colfax, were arrested by Yuba County law-enforcement officers Monday night following a high-speed pursuit near Marysville in which their vehicle was stopped by a spike strip.

They are expected to be arraigned today in Placer Superior Court on various charges.

Read earlier item here.

A Roseville couple is out on bail after being arrested on suspicion of tax evasion.

Franchise Tax Board special agents arrested Dino Puma, 48, a real estate broker and his wife, Jennifer Puma, 43, on Friday for allegedly failing to file their 2004-2007 state income tax returns and report more than $700,000 income, according to a press release from the board.

The state said the couple owes more than $44,000 in unpaid tax. Additional interest, penalties and cost of investigation will also be sought.

Auburn police have arrested a 20-year-old homeless man on suspicion of raping a 14-year-old girl while she was intoxicated and possibly unconscious.

Patrol officers investigating the attack that allegedly occurred Saturday, located the suspect, Taylour Francis Jordan, left, at a camp in Auburn, where he was living, according to a police department news release. He was arrested and booked at the Placer County jail, where he is being held in lieu of $250,000 bail.

Police said he is accused of rape with the victim unconscious of the nature of the act and unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor more than three years younger than he is.

By Bill Lindelof and Barbara Osborn
blindelof@sacbee.com

Two Placer County men were booked Tuesday for investigation of assault, kidnapping and two car thefts they allegedly committed during a three-day, three-county crime spree.

Dillon James McMahon, 22, of Roseville, and John Cody Adrian, 19, of Colfax, were arrested by Yuba County law-enforcement officers Monday night following a high-speed pursuit near Marysville in which their vehicle was stopped by a spike strip.

Earlier Monday evening, the pair is suspected of severely beating an elderly man with a tire iron in Nevada County when he refused to give them money.

In another twist on an old scam, a New York woman was introduced to Placer County this week when she found herself the target of con artists.

Osnat Edrich immediately knew something was amiss Tuesday when she received a check for $2,980 purporting to be from the county of Placer and bearing the address 2980 Richardson Drive, in the county government center in Auburn.

Edrich said she had never heard of Placer County or Auburn and had no idea why she would receive such a payment, until she received an email announcing her "first official assignment" and directing her to "get it done ASAP."

Q: A relative of mine, Kathleen Neff, disappeared in 1980 and her body was found later in Sacramento County? Was anyone ever arrested? - Anonymous, Sacramento

A: No one has been arrested in her homicide, according to The Bee archives and available records. (At left is photo of Neff released by her family in 1980.)

Neff, 21, disappeared after dropping her car off for service at a dealership on Florin Road near Franklin Boulevard on Oct. 16, 1980, The Bee reported.

Pheasant hunters found her body was found almost a month later in a drainage ditch off Elliott Ranch Road, approximately six miles south of the dealership. The badly decomposed body was clad only in a pair of socks.

An Auburn man has been arrested on suspicion of assaulting his wife and threatening to kill her and their 2-year-old daughter, the Auburn Police Department reported.

Last Friday, an Auburn Police officer met with an 18-year-old woman who reported being assaulted by her husband, later identified as 24-year-old Tyler Monsen (left), according to an Auburn police news release.

The victim claimed that she had gone to Monsen's residence on April 5 at his request to discuss financial matters after he had allegedly threatened to kill her and their daughter if she did not comply, the release states.

A Los Gatos man has been sentenced in Placer County Superior Court to five years in prison for a plot to seek revenge for a perceived wrongdoing by a contractor who built a retaining wall for him.

Udi Fishman, left, 60, a mechanical engineer and rental property owner, was convicted by a trial jury on Feb. 1 of first-degree residential burglary with a finding by the jury that people were present in the home during the commission of the crime. He also was convicted of attempted false imprisonment, possession of a deadly weapon - a billy club - and two counts of illegal use of tear gas. The jury acquitted him of attempted murder and attempted kidnapping.

Fishman disguised himself as a Pacific Gas and Electric Co. worker, drove to the Auburn-area home of the contractor and used bear spray on the man's wife and her brother-in-law, according to a Placer County District Attorney's Office news release. He then physically fought with the brother-in-law before being stabbed with a knife by the female victim.

Police say that somebody left a water bottle bomb in an Auburn driveway over the weekend.

Auburn police officers were called to the 400 block of Riverview Drive on Sunday where a citizen reported finding a water bottle with a chemical odor and BBs inside. A Placer County Sheriff's Department explosive ordnance department deputy responded and disposed of the device.

Police said the homemade devices can cause injury from explosion, including severe burns. Police said there is no information to release on why the bottle was left in the driveway.

A 53-year-old man has been sentenced to 16 years in prison for sexually abusing a 12-year-old girl in Kings Beach.

Silvestre Calderon Marquez was sentenced Wednesday by Placer County Superior Court Judge Larry D. Gaddis. Marquez pleaded guilty last month to a felony count of continuous sexual abuse of a minor, according to a Placer County District Attorney's Office news release.

Prosecutor Tracy Lunardi said Marquez had moved into a home with the girl's family, and the sexual abuse of the child occurred form December 2009 to March 2010.

An identity theft pioneer has received a two-year state prison sentence in Placer County for making life miserable for a Florida man.

Joseph Daniel Oscar Kidd, 56, was sentenced Friday in Placer County Superior Court after pleading no contest to identity theft and welfare fraud.

Kidd assumed the name of Larry Edward Smith in 1993 after he obtained the real Smith's date of birth and social security number.

Kidd moved to Auburn and was arrested numerous times for drugs and once for forgery.

"He's been convicted in seven prior Placer County cases under the victim's identity of Larry Smith," said prosecutor Joe Hoffmann of the Placer County District Attorney's Office.

Meanwhile, the real Larry Smith was tormented by Kidd's theft of his identity. Smith, 67 and a resident of Florida, has had liens placed against tax refunds, been denied medical care, had his driver's license suspended and once was stuck in jail for eight days under an arrest warrant because of Kidd's crimes in California.

Prosecutor Hoffmann plans to help Smith even more.

"I am petitioning the court to find Larry Smith factually innocent in all 7 prior criminal cases that involved Mr. Kidd," Hoffmann said in a district attorney's press release.

Three teenage boys were held up in broad daylight earlier this week in Auburn.

The boys were walking along High Street near College Way about 2 p.m. Monday when a dark gray or black sedan pulled up and a passenger armed with a knife got out. The robber took a cell phone from one of the boys.

Auburn police described the robber as white, 20 to 25 years old, with a goatee and brown hair. He was wearing a blue and black baseball cap and a long blue t-shirt.

An Auburn-area martial arts instructor has been arrested on suspicion of committing lewd acts with a child.

Auburn Police Department detectives arrested Matthew Barraza, 31, on Monday following an investigation. He is accused of committing lewd acts with a 14-year-old who was one of his martial arts students, according to a Police Department news release.

Barraza was booked into Placer County Jail with bail set at $250,000.

A 66-year-old graduate of Del Oro High School in Loomis has been sentenced to six months in jail and ordered to take anger management classes for one year for making criminal threats against the school's head football coach.

Dennis Blaine McLin was angry because players at the school had continued to wear a jersey number that was supposed to have been retired in 1961, according to a Placer County District Attorney's Office news release.

He was sentenced Friday after pleading no contest to a felony count of stalking and a misdemeanor charge of making criminal threats.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

One woman has been arrested and Auburn police seek the public's help in locating a second woman in connection with a fraudulent credit card transaction at a local business.

The two women, identified as Regina Yuvienco and Karina Santiago, are accused of attempting to purchase electronics equipment with a fraudulent credit card at an electronics store on Grass Valley Highway in Auburn.

When the credit card transaction was declined, the suspects told the store clerk that they would call the customer service number for the credit card company to obtain an approval, according to Police Department news release.

By Carlos Alcalá
calcala@sacbee.com

Auburn police have arrested a pair of teens they believe stole a friend's ATM card, and then tried to use it at the friend's workplace.

The 16-year-old victim reported the attempted use of his card to Officer Stan Hamelin on March 26.

The teen's co-workers at the Taco Tree on Oakwood Drive in Auburn told him that two people tried to use his card March 13 to buy less than $10 of food.

By Matt Kawahara
mkawahara@sacbee.com

Placer County sheriff's detectives have arrested one of two women suspected of passing nearly $27,000 in counterfeit bills in Placer and Sacramento counties, a sheriff's detective said.

Aimee Taylor, 26, of Sacramento, was arrested at 3 p.m. Thursday at Heritage Inn in Roseville, said sheriff's Detective Jim Hudson. Information provided by the public helped detectives find Taylor.

Placer County sheriff's detectives, Roseville police and U.S. Secret Service officials participated in the arrest, Hudson said.

By Ed Fletcher
efletcher@sacbee.com

The city of Rocklin has promoted one of its two police captains to the chief's position.

Capt. Ronald Lawrence, 41, will assume the chief's role effective Friday.

Lawrence has been in law enforcement since 1990, and with the department since 2009.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

Placer County sheriff's detectives seek the public's help in finding two women accused of passing nearly $27,000 in counterfeit bills in Placer and Sacramento counties.

Aimee Taylor, left, 27, and Brandie Smith, right, 26, both of Sacramento, are suspected of passing the fake money.

Anyone with information on their location is asked to call Detective Jim Hudson at (530) 889-7855.

By Bee Staff

A U.S. District Court judge sentenced a former Rocklin drywall installer today to 28 months prison for failing to pay more than $1 million in taxes.

Benjamin B. Wagner, the U.S. attorney in Sacramento, said that William Roseberry, 59, previously of Rocklin, had earlier pleaded guilty to tax fraud.

Senior U.S. District Judge Lawrence K. Karlton also ordered Roseberry to pay the Internal Revenue Service $1,040,500.36.

By Matthew Kawahara
mkawahara@sacbee.com

A Sacramento County man convicted of trying to run down a Roseville policeman with his car in 2009 was sentenced Friday to five years and four months in state prison.

Walter Carrillo, 19, was sentenced by Placer County Superior Court Judge Mark S. Curry after being convicted Jan. 26 of felony assault on a peace officer and other charges, including hit-and-run driving causing injury, according to a Placer County District Attorney's Office news release.

In addition to the prison sentence, Carrillo's driving privileges were revoked for life, according to the release.

By Bill Lindelof
blindelof@sacbee.com

Auburn police have arrested a man for an attempted robbery in an alleyway last night.

Police said that a 25-year-old man was walking on in the 800 block of Lincoln Way about 11 p.m. Sunday when he was approached by another man they identified as Darrell Eugene Polk.

Polk, police said, asked the man for cigarettes before pulling the victim by his coat into the alley. There, Polk, 34, allegedly pulled a knife and asked for the victim's money.

By Denny Walsh
dwalsh@sacbee.com

A Lincoln man caught with a small arsenal of weapons was charged Thursday in a federal grand jury indictment with being a felon in possession of firearms, including three machine guns and a fragmentation grenade.

The weapons were seized three months ago from Eric William Smith, who was previously convicted of felony grand theft in Sacramento County.

Smith, 36, faces a maximum prison term of 10 years on each of the indictment's three counts.

Q: I heard Paul Kovacich Jr., a former Placer County deputy sheriff who killed his wife, is being held in a minimum security prison. Is that true? - Anonymous, Placer County

A: No. Kovacich, now 61, is being held in medium security at Ironwood State Prison at Blythe, a State Corrections and Rehabilitation Department spokesman said. (Photo at left is a 2006 jail booking photo.)

Ironwood has minimum and medium security inmates, according to the prison's description on the corrections department's website, which may have caused the confusion.

Kovacich was sentenced to 27 years to life in prison in April 2009 for the 1982 murder of his wife, The Bee reported.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

A 58-year-old Oakland man was found dead this morning on a ski run within the Soda Springs ski resort in Placer County.

A Placer County search and rescue K-9 team located John Hoffman on the Strawberry Field ski run about 9 a.m., said Placer County sheriff's Capt. Jeff Ausnow.

He said there were no signs of trauma and it is possible that Hoffman, who was skiing alone, died from natural causes. The cause of death will not be known until an autopsy is completed, Ausnow said.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

An Auburn man has been sentenced to six months in jail after pleading no contest to a single count of possessing counterfeiting apparatus.

Jerod Williams, 24, was arrested March 11 on suspicion of cashing and attempting to cash fraudulent checks at the Cash Club in Auburn. Police said they had received reports that Williams was impersonating a Wave Broadband employee to obtain goods and services.

Williams entered the plea in Placer County Superior Court on Friday.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

Two Sacramento men were arrested in Auburn on suspicion of burglary and identity theft, after a Target store security guard recognized them as individuals suspected of previously using a stolen credit card at the business.

The men, identified as Stacy Alan King (above, left), 22, and Michael Raymond Adame (above, right), 28, are suspected of vehicle burglaries in Sacramento and Placer counties.

They entered the Target store on Bell Road in Auburn at 6 p.m. Saturday, and the security guard recognized them as suspects in an incident that had occurred the previous week, according to a Placer County Sheriff's Department news release. Store security officers monitored the men and called the Sheriff's Department. Deputies detained the men as they left the store.

By Bill Lindelof
blindelof@sacbee.com

Two people were arrested on suspicion of breaking into the Stanford Ranch Animal Medical Center late last night.

Rocklin police said that at about 10:20 p.m. Sunday officers went to the vet hospital at 2311 Sunset Blvd. after receiving a report of two people trying to break into the rear of the business. The burglars were reported to be dressed in black and attempting to pry open a door.

However, the burglars were not successful and left before the arrival of officers. They returned after officers went back on patrol, residents of a nearby apartment complex reporting that that the burglars were back at it shortly before midnight.

By Carlos Alcalá
calcala@sacbee.com

An Auburn woman's credit card was used for video games, but the 77-year-old wasn't the PlayStation addict.

The woman reported losing her purse on her return from the grocery store back in January, Auburn police reported.

She believed it had fallen out of her car and that someone who found it was using her credit cards.

By Matt Kawahara
mkawahara@sacbee.com

An Auburn man was arrested last week after he allegedly poked his female housemate in the forehead with a fork during an argument, according to an Auburn Police Department release.

James Warren Svanda, 59, was arrested following an argument Saturday that apparently escalated because some items in the household broke, according to the release.

Officers responded to a residence in the 11000 block of Camjen Lane at about 3:30 p.m. March 12 and found a woman with minor injuries to her head. She alleged that Svanda, also a resident, had poked her with a fork, the release states.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

Two Davis residents have died of injuries sustained Thursday in a head-on traffic collision in Placer County.

The California Highway Patrol reported that Maria McArren, 74, and Richard Tanner, 77, died Thursday afternoon after being taken by air ambulance to Sutter Roseville Medical Center.

The collision occurred shortly before noon as Billy A. Keller, 25, of Foresthill was driving a Mazda 626 westbound of Foresthill Road, east of Drivers Flat. McArren was driving a Honda Civic eastbound on Foresthill Road, when Keller's vehicle traveled into the eastbound lane, directly into the path of McArren's vehicle, according to a CHP news release.

By Bill Lindelof
blindleof@sacbee.com

The driver of a big-rig truck who was hit and killed when he stopped to assist at an accident on Interstate 80 near Blue Canyon was identified today by the Placer County Sheriff's Department.

William Gonzales, 54, of Sacramento died Thursday when he was struck by another vehicle that slid off an icy Interstate 80.

Officer Todd Kettwig of the California Highway Patrol said the driver of a Jeep Cherokee was eastbound on Interstate 80 just west of Blue Canyon about 6:50 a.m. when he encountered ice and lost control of the vehicle.

By Matt Kawahara
mkawahara@sacbee.com

A Sacramento man who carjacked and kidnapped a woman near Roseville in 2009 has been sentenced to 30 years to life in state prison, according to a Placer County District Attorney release.

Rick Anthony Cooley (left), 32, a "three-strikes" law offender, pleaded no contest on Feb. 17 to a felony charge of kidnapping during a carjacking, the release states. Cooley also admitted to allegations that he had committed three serious or violent felonies for which he served prison sentences, the release states.

The carjacking and kidnapping occurred Nov. 12, 2009, according to the release, which gives this description of the crime:

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

A 32-year-old man has been sentenced to two years in prison in connection with an incident in July in which several shots were fired into the air from a moving vehicle in front of a Cal Fire station in Foresthill.

Joshua Trinidad Lemas (left), of Foresthill was sentenced last week by Placer County Superior Court Judge Larry D. Gaddis after pleading no contest on Feb. 9 to a felony count of being a felon in possession of a firearm and to a misdemeanor count of brandishing a firearm.

The incident occurred about 2:40 p.m. July 27 on Foresthill Road when a Dodge Challenger was driven past the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection station and shots rang out.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

The driver of a big-rig truck who stopped to assist at an accident scene near Blue Canyon died this morning when he was struck by another vehicle that slid off an icy Interstate 80.

Officer Todd Kettwig of the California Highway Patrol said the driver of a Jeep Cherokee was eastbound on Interstate 80 just west of Blue Canyon about 6:50 a.m. when he encountered ice and lost control of the vehicle.

The Jeep slid across the highway and down the northern embankment at the highway median.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

An Auburn man arrested last week on suspicion of cashing and attempting to cash fraudulent checks is now also accused of manufacturing checks and impersonating company employees.

Auburn police detectives arrested Jerod Williams, 24, Friday on suspicion of cashing and attempting to cash fraudulent checks at the Cash Club in Auburn. They also received reports that Williams was impersonating a Wave Broadband employee to obtain goods and services.

Williams, who remains in the Placer County Jail, is also accused of manufacturing checks purported to be for a company in New Jersey.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

The Lincoln Police Department has released enhanced security-camera photos (see below) of a jewelry store burglary and seeks the public's help in identifying the suspects.

Lincoln Jewelers, at 395 South Highway 65, was burglarized shortly before midnight March 9 by two individuals wearing gloves and dressed in hooded sweatshirts to hide their faces.

The thieves smashed the front window and used a hammer to demolish the glass on merchandise cases, then used plastic trash cans they brought with them to load the valuables.

By Bill Lindelof
blindelof@sacbee.com

A Sierra college student, who was found guilty of attempted murder for a stabbing on campus, has been sentenced to 11 years in state prison.

Paul Thomas Heintz, 23, was sentenced Friday by a Placer County Superior Court Judge. He had been found guilty Sept. 30 for the stabbing of a former friend in a fit of rage.

Heintz was angry because his friend, Alex Abrahamian, had struck up a relationship with a woman who Heintz had twice dated. On March, 24, 2009, Abrahamian, who was on spring break from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, came onto the campus of Sierra College in Rocklin to see old friends, including the woman.

By Carlos Alcalá
calcala@sacbee.com

The U.S. Secret Service is assisting Auburn police in investigating what appears to be a check and currency counterfeiting operation.

The investigation began after Auburn police arrested Jerod Williams, 24, on suspicion of passing fraudulent checks.

Police arrested him Friday at his home.

By Bill Lindelof
blindelof@sacbee.com

Quick-hitting burglars, who loaded at least $50,000 in rings, watches and necklaces into trash cans, have dealt a blow to a Lincoln family-owned jewelry business.

But the matriarch of the family said they will continue to work hard despite the break-in and the difficult economic times.

"This can't stop us," said store co-owner Debbie Rhodes. "We are just grateful for the family we have, the support we have."

By Denny Walsh and Sam Stanton
dwalsh@sacbee.com

Alexander Piggee pleaded guilty today to setting the massive Oct. 21 arson blaze at the Westfield Galleria in Roseville and likely will face 10 years in prison when he is sentenced on May 24.

The 24-year-old Sacramento man pleaded guilty to two arson counts in U.S. District Court in Sacramento this morning, one involving the $55 million Galleria blaze and the other for a minor fire he set at a North Highlands Walmart earlier that day.

Piggee could have faced up to 20 years in prison on each count, but federal prosecutors say they plan to ask that he be sentenced to two five-year terms to be served consecutively. Piggee also has agreed to plead guilty in Sacramento Superior Court to setting a blaze that damaged his grandmother's Oak Park home in the weeks before the Galleria fire. The District Attorney's office has agreed to recommend that any sentence he receive in that case be served concurrently with his federal time.

By Bill Lindelof
blindelof@sacbee.com

Three businesses were burglarized overnight in Rocklin on Sunset Boulevard, police reported.

The burglaries were reported at 2164, 2221 and 2600 Sunset Blvd. In each of the break-ins, someone shattered the front glass of a business and entered to steal.

By Bill Lindelof and Cathy Locke
blindelof@sacbee.com

Roseville police arrested today 20-year-old Jackson Robert Gall of Roseville on suspicion of shooting his roommate.

A Roseville police officer stopped a speeding vehicle on Sunrise Avenue near Kensington Drive at 5:06 a.m. today and found that one of the passengers, Nicholas Hammer, 22, had a gunshot wound in his neck, according to a Police Department news release.

The officer called for emergency medical responders and Hammer was taken by ambulance to a local hospital, where he was listed in critical condition this afternoon.

Q: What happened to Martin Jennings of Roseville? - BMF, Sacramento

A: A Placer Superior Court judge sentenced Martin F. Jennings III to spend seven years in prison on Jan. 28, 1994, for causing the drunken-driving death of a Rocklin man, the Placer County District Attorney's Office told The Bee and published reports show.

Jennings, then 22, of Granite Bay was convicted by a jury of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence in the death of Derrick Wasson, who was killed Nov. 22, 1991. The jury acquitted Jennings of a second-degree murder charge, The Bee reported.

Wasson was a passenger in a car that smashed into an oak tree at 80 mph on a Granite Bay road. Jennings, whose blood-alcohol level was three times the legal limit, was the driver.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

Roseville police are searching for a man who accosted a teenage girl outside a school gymnasium Wednesday evening.

About 7:15 p.m., a 14-year-old girl was at a club volleyball practice in the gym at Eich Intermediate School on Sierra Gardens Drive.

She stepped outside to cool off, and a stranger approached her, grabbed her by the arm and tried to pull her away from the gym doors, according to a Roseville Police Department news release.

By Bill Lindelof
blindelof@sacbee.com

A Roseville gang member has been sentenced to 36 years to life in state prison by a Placer County judge who noted the defendant had spent nearly 80 percent of his adult life in custody.

Jose Vincent Rubal Jr. (left), 39, received the sentence Tuesday after Superior Court Judge Jeff Penney denied his motion to dismiss prior serious offenses in hopes of getting a lighter prison term. Rubal is a "three-strikes" offender. (California's three-strikes law allows harsher sentences for repeat felons.)

At least two of his prior crimes involved assaults with a knife. The judge figured that Rubal has spent 6,350 days of his adult life in custody, according to a press release from the Placer County District Attorney's office.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

A Roseville man has pleaded guilty in federal court to possessing and receiving visual depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

In entering the plea, Thomas Neal, 41, admitted that in February of last year, he possessed a computer hard drive and several computer disks that contained more than 800 still images and more than 200 videos, each depicting minors engaged in sexually explicit activity, according to a federal Department of Justice news release. In addition, Neal admitted that on or about June 30, 2009, he downloaded from the Internet a video depicting a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

According to court documents, many of the images and videos Neal possessed depicted known and previously identified children whose abuse images were produced outside California.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

A joint SWAT team from the Rocklin and Roseville police departments served a search warrant at a Rocklin home today after receiving a report that a 15-year-old girl had been sexually assaulted by one of the residents at the house over the weekend.

The SWAT team was used to serve the warrant at the home in the 1800 block of Sorrell Circle because the victim had reported seeing a gun at the time of the assault, according to a Rocklin Police Department news release.

Neighbors immediately next door to the residence were asked to leave their home as a precaution, and other neighbors were asked to stay indoors until the suspect was found and arrested.

By Bill Lindelof
blindelof@sacbee.com

Auburn police used Tasers on a woman who they say refused to put down a knife.

Police were asked to respond to the Holiday Inn on the Grass Valley Highway at 2 p.m. Saturday. Hotel staff complained that a woman was angry after she was locked out of her room for not paying her entire bill.

While officers were en route, hotel staff again called the police department and reported that the same customer had a knife. Upon arrival, officers approached Jelissa Warkentin, 24, from opposite directions as she exited an elevator.

By Denny Walsh
dwalsh@sacbee.com

Slashed tires were discovered early today on approximately 20 vehicles in the Sandhill Drive area of Rocklin.

Police officers responded to a call at 7:15 a.m. and encountered the handiwork of a vandal or vandals.

Each tire had a cut mark "consistent with a blade-type puncture," according to a Rocklin Police Department news release. It said the vehicles were parked on the street or in the victims' driveways. An investigation is under way, but no arrests have been made.

Anyone with information related to these crimes is asked to phone the department at (916) 625-5400.

Call The Bee's Denny Walsh, (916) 321-1189.

By Ed Fletcher
efletcher@sacbee.com

Sacramento Police Sgt. John Castiglia pleaded "no contest" to one count of petty theft at a scheduled county appearance today, according to the Placer County District Attorney's Office.

Castiglia had previously pleaded not guilty.

He was cited in May on suspicion of stealing razors and deodorant from a WinCo store in Roseville.

He was sentenced to one year of probation, the DA's Office said.

Call The Bee's Ed Fletcher, (916) 321-1269.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

The Auburn Police Department is seeking the public's help to identify a man wanted for theft and vandalism at local gas stations earlier this month.

On Feb. 10 the suspect stole more than 200 gallons of premium grade gasoline from an Auburn gas station in the early morning hours. The station was closed, but the man's actions were caught on a surveillance camera.

On Feb. 12, the Police Department received a report of vandalism at another nearby gas station. In this case, the suspect damaged the fuel pumps by prying open a panel on one of the pumps, according to a Police Department news release.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

A Placer County sheriff's deputy was injured this morning in a traffic collision near Auburn.

The deputy was riding his personal Yamaha motorcycle westbound on Bell Road west of Blue Oaks Drive, when an 83-year-old man driving a green Subaru wagon exited a private parking lot on the north side of Bell Road. The driver of the Subaru made a left turn across the westbound lanes of Bell Road directly in front of the motorcycle, according to a California Highway Patrol news release.

The motorcyclist swerved in an attempt to avoid the Subaru but collided with the left corner of the vehicle. The motorcyclist was ejected and suffered non-life-threatening injuries. He was taken by air ambulance to Sutter Roseville Medical Center.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

A Sacramento man faces up to 30 years to life in prison after pleading no contest to kidnapping a woman in a 2009 Roseville-area carjacking incident.

Rick Anthony Cooley, 32, a three-strike offender, entered the plea of no contest to a felony count of kidnapping during the commission of a carjacking, according to a Placer County District Attorney's Office news release.

In an appearance Thursday in a Placer County courtroom, he also admitted to special allegations that he had committed prior serious or violent felonies for which he served prison time, the release states.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

A woman who pretended to be a licensed vocational nurse has been sentenced to nine months in Placer County Jail and ordered to pay back $240,000 to an 85-year-old Foresthill man whom she defrauded over a period of years.

Debra Leigh Kelly, 55, of Foresthill was sentenced Wednesday by Placer County Superior Court Judge Frances Kearney after pleading guilty to a felony count of theft or embezzlement from an elder. Judge Kearney also placed Kelly on four years probation.

Kelly had also pleaded guilty to misdemeanor counts of impersonating a licensed vocational nurse and practicing a trade without a valid license, according to a Placer County District Attorney's Office news release.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

An 84-year-old Auburn man died this afternoon in a collision on Highway 49 north of Auburn.

California Highway Patrol Officer Dave Martinez said Roy Inman was driving a Chevrolet pickup and was pulling out of China Lane onto Highway 49 shortly before 3 p.m.

Martinez said Inman pulled into the path of northbound sedan driven by a 49-year-old Auburn woman. Her vehicle struck the driver's side of Inman's truck.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

Alert neighbors are credited for a quick police response and arrest of two suspects in several home burglaries Wednesday afternoon in Roseville.

The search began about 1:45 p.m. when a resident of the 1300 block of Greenborough Drive reported that a young man knocked on his door and asked for a person who had never lived at the house.

The resident saw a silver compact sedan pull up, and the man got a backpack from the driver and started walking around the neighborhood, the release states.

By Bill Lindelof
blindelof@sacbee.com

The U.S. Postal Service is warning customers in rural Placer County that someone has exploded dry-ice bombs in mail boxes.

The bombs exploded Wednesday in two mail boxes in a rural area of Sheridan, which is north of Lincoln near Wheatland.

A third dry-ice fueled bomb was also placed in a mail box.

By Bill Enfield

benfield@sacbee.com

A Placer County man who left his dying wife bleeding and nude outside their home overnight is due a parole hearing later this month.

Layne Kenneth Bakken, now 65, is serving a 15 years to life sentence he received on July 9, 1995, for the second-degree murder of Katherine Bakken, 28.

Testimony at his trial showed that Katherine Bakken died of head injuries after being left outside overnight, nude and bleeding, on a concrete walkway outside the couple's home in Weimar.

By Bill Lindelof

blindelof@sacbee.com

A Truckee man with a long criminal history, including manslaughter, has been sent to prison under the state's "three-strikes" law.

Douglas Harold Doyle (left), 51, whose past crimes including an alcohol-related vehicular manslaughter conviction in which a Tahoe City schoolteacher was killed, was sent to prison for 25 years to life, according to a news release from the Placer County District Attorney's Office.

He pleaded guilty to a charge of drunk driving and was sentenced Feb. 2 by Placer County Superior Court Judge Colleen Nichols.

By Ed Fletcher
efletcher@sacbee.com

Rocklin Police says the young man who scared the life out of his neighbors Sunday with a homemade explosive was an unskilled amateur chemist, but not a terrorist.

"It's our opinion -- at this time -- it's really a kid screwing around to a higher magnitude than we are used to," said Lt. Terry Roide.

Ryan William Linn, 25, of Rocklin, is being held in the Placer County's jail without bail as a result of the Feb. 13 explosion.

By Carlos Alcalá
calcala@sacbee.com

Roseville police have released the name of the 16-month-old girl found dead in her Hearthside Way home Friday.

The child has been identified as Isabella Michelle Heredia.

Police and fire crews went to the child's home Friday morning, responding to reports that she was not breathing. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

By Carlos Alcalá
calcala@sacbee.com

Auburn police have arrested a man wanted in connection with a September home invasion after Roseville police jailed the man on other charges.

Roseville police arrested Kenneth Amick, 45, on suspicion of stealing water backflow devices.

Amick, who was already wanted by Auburn police, was interviewed by Auburn detectives in Placer County Jail and rebooked on suspicion of burglary, battery with serious bodily injury and conspiracy.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

Roseville police are investigating the death of an 16-month-old girl this morning.

Police Department spokeswoman DeeDee Gunther said police and firefighters responded to a home in the 2600 block of Hearthside Way at 11:12 a.m. after receiving a report of a child who was unresponsive and not breathing.

The child was pronounced dead at the scene. Gunther said there were no obvious signs of what happened and detectives are investigating to determine the cause of death.

An autopsy will be performed by the Placer County Coroner's Office.

Call The Bee's Cathy Locke, (916) 321-5287.

Bee photo: Firefighters respond to the Roseville Galleria blaze on Oct. 21 of last year.

Bee staff

Alexander Piggee was arraigned today in U.S. District Court on two counts of arson stemming from the Oct. 21 fire that burned part of the Westfield Galleria in Roseville and a minor fire at a North Highlands Walmart.

Through his attorney, Johnny Griffin III, Piggee entered a plea of not guilty.

He is being detained without bail in federal custody. He was being held in the Placer County jail on charges related to the Galleria fire, but those charges were dismissed Tuesday after the case was moved to federal jurisdiction.

Piggee is scheduled to appear before U.S. District Judge John A. Mendez on March 8.

Photo Gallery: Westfield Galleria in Roseville

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

The defense attorney for the suspect in October's arson at the Roseville Galleria said he was taken aback by a Placer County prosecutor's statement in court today that his client is "mentally competent," but he is not concerned that the information has been made public.

Attorney Johnny L. Griffin III said he had sent another member of his staff to Tuesday's court session at which the Placer County District Attorney's Office was to request dismissal of the Superior Court charges in order to transfer the case to federal court.

During the dismissal proceedings, Deputy District Attorney David Broady stated that defendant Alexander Piggee's medical report concluded that he was mentally competent.

By Bill Lindelof
blindelof@sacbee.com

A man died this morning when the motorcycle he was driving left a Placer County roadway, according to the California Highway Patrol.

Few details of the crash were initially available. The motorcycle apparently drove off Sierra College Boulevard just south of Highway 193 about 10:45 a.m.

Call The Bee's Bill Lindelof, (916) 321-1079.

By Bill Lindelof
blindelof@sacbee.com

A Placer County man has been arrested on suspicion of stealing brass plumbing devices for their recycling value.

Roseville police said that Kenneth Elliot Amick, 45, who has no permanent address, was arrested on suspicion of grand theft. Police said there has been a spate of thefts of the expensive backflow devices.

Detectives were conducting surveillance when they saw a person they said was Amick tampering with a water backflow device on Springview Drive in Rocklin. Amick was arrested and police said they collected evidence linking him to thefts of the devices in the Sierra College Boulevard, Miner's Ravine and Olympus Pointe areas.

By Bill Lindelof
blindelof@sacbee.com

Two people have been arrested in connection with church vandalism that included the destruction of a set for a children's Christmas play.

Burglars caused thousands of dollars of damage and destroyed a set for an upcoming children's Christmas play at New Hope Lutheran Church in Foresthill, Placer County, on Dec. 13.

By Ed Fletcher
efletcher@sacbee.com

Roseville officials announced Monday that Sacramento police captain Daniel Hahn will be the city's next police chief.

Hahn was seen as a rising star within the Sacramento Police Department, where he worked for 23 years.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

The man arrested on suspicion of arson in the two October fires, including one that caused more than $55 million in damage to the Roseville Galleria, has been federally charged with arson.

Charges filed in Placer County will be dismissed, the U.S. attorney in Sacramento said.

A federal grand jury in Sacramento returned an indictment charging Alexander Piggee, 23, of Sacramento with two counts of arson for causing fires that damaged the Westfield Galleria Mall in Roseville and a Wal-Mart store on Antelope Road in Sacramento County. Both fires occurred Oct. 21.

Photo caption: Placerville Union School District Superintendent Nancy Lynch answers questions about during a press outside the district office in Placerville. Photo by Randy Pench.

By Peter Hecht, Bill Lindelof, Carlos Alcala and Cathy Locke
phecht@sacbee.com

A disagreement between the custodian and principal over a hiring panel that had met the previous day may have led to shooting of Louisiana Schnell Elementary School principal Sam LaCara Wednesday.

Placerville Police said custodian John Luebbers told investigators that he went home to get a gun after being fired by LaCara. But Placerville Union School District Superintendent Nancy Lynch said during a news conference this afternoon that Luebbers had not been fired, but rather instructed by LaCara to go home and cool off.

"He was upset about a disagreement," Lynch said of Luebbers. "It was a personnel issue, but he was an employee of the district."

By Bill Lindelof

blindelof@sacbee.com

A woman walking home with a couple of pizzas was attacked, Auburn police said today. A Grass Valley man was booked into jail on suspicion of swiping one of the pizzas.

Police gave this account:

A woman called police to say that about 1:30 a.m. Saturday she was walking from Pistol Pete's bar, 140 Harrison Avenue, to her home with two pizzas when a car pulled alongside.

The passenger of the car got out and knocked one pizza from her hands.

By Dale Kasler
dkasler@sacbee.com

Bankrupt Roseville developer Abe Alizadeh, accused of stealing state tax dollars, has been released on bail from the Placer County jail.

His release Wednesday came two weeks after he was arrested, according to jail records. Bail had been set at $1 million.

He is scheduled to appear in Placer County Superior Court on Feb. 28 to enter a plea.

Q: What is the status of Douglas Scott Mickey who killed two people in Placer County? - T.G., Newcastle

A: Douglas Mickey, now 62, is on death row at San Quentin State Prison, where he has been since September 1983, records show.

Mickey received the death sentence for the September 1980 murders of two Placer County residents - Eric Hanson, 29, and Catherine Blount, 19, The Bee reported.

The two were killed in their rural home off Wise Road in Ophir.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

A man who Auburn police say was on Placer County's "20 most wanted" list has been arrested in connection with a collision between a quad runner and a Union Pacific train.

About noon Jan. 22, police were dispatched to the area of a train trestle over Interstate 80 regarding a report that a train had hit a person riding a quad runner, according to an Auburn Police Department news release. The quad rider left the area before police arrived and was not located.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

A 19-year-old Sacramento County man is facing a prison sentence after being convicted for trying to run over a Roseville police officer with his car after undercover officers closed in on him during a drug bust.

A Placer County jury on Jan. 26 found Walter Carrillo guilty of felony assault on a peace officer for trying to strike the officer with his vehicle as Carrillo tried to flee from a parking lot at Main Street and Foothills Boulevard in Roseville the night of March 6, 2009. The officer, who was not in a car, managed to dive out of the way and suffered injuries when he landed on the ground, according to a Placer County District Attorney's Office news release.

The jury also found Carrillo guilty of assault on a citizen because he struck a vehicle being driven by a woman as he tried to speed away from officers. The woman suffered injuries as a result, officials said.

By Bill Lindelof and Sam Stanton
blindelof@sacbee.com

Suspect Joseph Kidd, above

Larry Smith

Deputies hope that the arrest of Joseph Kidd on Tuesday has put to rest a nightmare of identity theft for a Florida man.

Kidd, 56, a homeless Auburn man, was arrested by Placer County Sheriff's deputies on suspicion of identity theft, welfare fraud and grand theft.

Deputies allege that for 17 years Kidd has told people he was Larry Smith of Florida. During that time, Smith has been trying to clear his name.

By Ed Fletcher
efletcher@sacbee.com

Placer Superior Court Judge Colleen Nichols declared a mistrial Tuesday morning in the case of a sheriff's deputy accused of firing shots into the air in 2009 after a jury said it was hopelessly deadlocked and couldn't reach a unanimous verdict. NIchols then dismissed the case, meaning it cannot be refiled.

Jury Foreman Chris Randolph said final vote was: 9 not guilty; 2 guilty; and 1 undecided.

He said the jury ultimately discounted the testimony of a key prosecution witness, a woman, then 18, who claimed to have seen Placer Sheriff's Lt. John Savage firing a gun as he stood in the driveway of this then Rocklin home. (An earlier version of this story didn't accurately characterize her testimony.)

By Bill Lindelof
blindelof@sacbee.com

A Roseville man has been arraigned in Placer County Superior Court on suspicion of insurance fraud, according to California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones. Investigators said they suspect the man was trying to avoid a $400 monthly car payment.

A news release from Jones stated Anthony Molina, 24, allegedly pushed his car off a cliff in Placer County and then reported it stolen July 27 to his insurance company and police.

A search warrant for cell phone records confirmed a call was made from Molina's cell phone to his girlfriend and that the call was placed in the Blue Canyon area where his car was later found, the press release stated.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

An anonymous tip to Placer County Crime Stoppers has led to the arrest of two Lincoln men in connection with more than $100,000 in damage to the Manzanita Cemetery near Lincoln in November.

The Placer County Sheriff's Department said that Cody Lee Piland (left below) and Steven Robert Warn III (right below), both 19, have been arrested and are cooperating with detectives in the ongoing investigation of a crime spree in major damages to the cemetery.

An estimated 100 to 150 headstones, some more than 100 years old, were overturned, pulled out of the ground or broken into pieces. The vandalism occurred between Nov. 12 and 14.

By Bill Lindelof
blindelof@sacbee.com

A suspected drunken driver allegedly rammed an Auburn police car twice after he nearly entered the freeway in the wrong direction.

Police said that about 10:30 p.m. Thursday, a man driving an older Chevrolet pickup northwest on Lincoln Way in Old Town Auburn failed to stop at a stop sign at Maple Street. At that point, the driver turned west onto the eastbound Interstate 80 offramp.

Auburn Police Sgt. Dale Hutchins said he observed the driver's actions and activated his emergency lights. The officer also positioned his vehicle behind the pickup as the man made a U-turn on the onramp.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

The Placer County Sheriff's Department has announced a reward for information leading to the arrest of an armed man who robbed an Auburn-area gas station early Tuesday and also bound the hands of a newspaper delivery woman who interrupted the robbery.

Sheriff's officials said a surveillance photo (left) of the suspect obtained today shows a white man, 18 to 25 years old, as he exits the Chevron station at 13381 Lincoln Way.

He was wearing a striped beanie over shoulder-length hair, and was described as 5 feet 10 inches tall and weighing about 150 pounds. He was wearing a red T-shirt and black camouflage jacket.

By Denny Walsh
dwalsh@sacbee.com

One of two Roseville men was sentenced Thursday in federal court to three years and a month in prison for his part in stealing nearly $200,000 in life insurance proceeds from a dead Marine's grieving mother.

Robert Brogan, 63, pleaded guilty last February to a money-laundering conspiracy in connection with the theft.

Brogan's nephew, Raymond Brogan, 43, pleaded guilty to wire fraud in April 2009 and was sentenced the next October to two years and nine months in prison.

By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com

The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection and the Placer County Fire Department have scheduled a structure fire training exercise for Saturday.

Firefighters will burn a vacant house at 1450 Virginiatown Road, east of Lincoln. Officials say smoke may be visible in the Lincoln basin throughout the day.

The house was donated by the property owners to use for a live fire training exercise and has met all Air Pollution Control District guidelines, according to a Cal Fire news release.

The training is intended to allow firefighters to experience structural firefighting tactics in a controlled environment.

Call The Bee's Cathy Locke, (916) 321-5287.