Sacto 9-1-1

A couple were arraigned Thursday in federal court in Sacramento on charges related to the arson of their former home in Antelope.

Alexander Sakhanskiy, 39, and Larisa Sakhanskiy, 43, of Sacramento pleaded not guilty and each was released on a $50,000 bond, according to a federal Department of Justice news release. A status conference is scheduled for June 6 before Chief U.S. District Judge Morrison C. England Jr.

On May 2, a federal grand jury returned a five-count indictment charging the Sakhanskiys with arson to commit another felony, mail fraud, wire fraud and arson affecting interstate commerce. The indictment alleges that on May 22, 2010, a fire destroyed the couple's home, a single-family house at 5745 Hawkeye Lane in Antelope. The home was also being used as the business location of "Alex's Plumbing."

Four men, including two from Sacramento, were sentenced today in federal court in Sacramento for trafficking in the drug Ecstasy.

They were charged with conspiring to distribute MDMA, also known as Ecstasy, and possession with the intent to distribute MDMA, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

Judge Morrison C. England Jr. sentenced Robert Ly, 29, of Sacramento to nine years in prison, and Darryl Smith, 31, also of Sacramento, to five years and 10 months in prison. David Chong, 38, of Alameda received a 10-year prison sentence, and Dassany "Daisy" Keohimanh, 30, of Stockton, was sentenced to eight years and one month.

A Yolo County jury has found a Sacramento man guilty of second-degree murder in the death of a passenger in the vehicle he was driving in January 2012.

The jury also convicted 23-year-old Ryan Scott Baird of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated with two prior convictions for driving under the influence, driving under the influence causing injury and driving with blood alcohol at or above .08 causing injury, according to a Yolo County District Attorney's Office news release. Killed in the crash was Robert Sunderland III.

In addition, the jury found Baird guilty of enhancements for causing great bodily injury to Oscar Saeed Rodriguez, causing great bodily injury with a coma to James Black and causing injury to multiple victims.

A Citrus Heights couple has been sentenced to prison in a case of credit card fraud and mail theft involving more than 300 victims in Sacramento County.

Matthew Ray Ausborn, 33, and Christina Leanne Barrios, 29, were charged with ID theft, credit card fraud and three counts of possession of stolen U.S. mail, according to a federal Department of Justice news release. Ausborn was sentenced to three years and one month in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and Barrios was sentenced to two years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. A restitution hearing is scheduled for June 4 before U.S. District Judge John A. Mendez.

According to court documents, on July 2, 2011, Sacramento County sheriff's deputies found Ausborn and Barrios asleep inside an idling car on a residential street in Carmichael. The deputies arrested Barrios on an outstanding warrant, and Ausborn consented to a search of his vehicle. The search turned up a small amount of methamphetamine and approximately 400 pieces of stolen mail involving more than 250 Sacramento County victims. Also found were multiple identification documents for other people, checks, financial documents, handwritten notes containing personal identifying information, a laptop computer, printer and blank-check paper.

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

QUESTION: Was Daniel Chartraw sentenced May 2, and if so what was the sentence?
Submitted by: Chris, Los Angeles

ANSWER: According to U.S. District Court online records, Daniel Chartraw's sentencing has been continued to July 18.

A Woodland man has been sentenced to life in prison without possibility of parole for molesting a 2-year-old boy.

Yolo Superior Court Judge Stephen Mock also sentenced John "Tim" Ganthner, 46, to an additional 11 years and 8 months for physical injuries inflicted on the child in connection with the sexual assault, according to a Yolo County District Attorney's Office news release.

On the morning of Aug. 23, 2011, Ganthner was left alone to watch the child while his grandmother performed volunteer work with a local charity. When the grandmother returned home about 12:30 p.m., she noticed that the child had severe injuries to his private areas and chest. A medical exam determined that the child had been beaten and sexually assaulted, officials said.

A Las Vegas man is headed to prison after being sentenced in federal court in Sacramento for defrauding a South Lake Tahoe investor of $2.9 million.

U.S. District Judge Garland E. Burrell Jr. today sentenced Jed Baron, 55, to five years and three months in prison for wire fraud related to the investment scheme, according to a Department of Justice news release.

According to court documents, Baron made a series of false business proposals to a victim in the Lake Tahoe area, including investment in a venture to sell Irish seafood to restaurants in Las Vegas. Instead of using the victim's money for the intended purpose, Baron diverted the funds for personal use and to pay other investors from previous deals.

Two Sacramento brothers have pleaded guilty in a case involving identity theft and bank fraud.

Glen Patrick Shoults, 27, and Jackie Lester Shoults III, 31, admitted to stealing the identity of U.S. Postal Service and department store customers to commit bank fraud, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

Between Feb. and Dec. 15, 2012, Glen Shoults' girlfriend, co-defendant Kathleen S. Wade, worked at a Sacramento department store, according to court records. The Shoults brothers, at times using Wade's sales clerk position, made fraudulent transactions on bank and credit card accounts of numerous victims.

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

QUESTION: What happened to the two sheriff's deputies were charged in 2011 for selling guns to the ATF?
Submitted by: Sophia, Sacramento

ANSWER: Two Sacramento County sheriff's deputies were among four people indicted by a federal grand jury in May 2012 in a case that officials said involved the illegal purchase and sale of dozens of high-powered pistols.

A Placerville man has been sentenced in federal count in Sacramento to 42 months in prison for his role in an interstate marijuana distribution conspiracy.

U.S. District Judge Garland E. Burrell Jr. also sentenced Robert Edward Mulready to four years of supervised release following his time in prison.

Mulready previously pleaded guilty to conspiring to cultivate and distribute at least 100 marijuana plants, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

An inmate at California State Prison, Sacramento in Folsom has been sentenced to 28 years to life in prison for assaulting a fellow inmate.

Steven Thompson, 51, was convicted last month by a Sacramento County jury of assault on another inmate, personally inflicting great bodily injury and possession of a weapon, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release.

Thompson is serving time in prison for first-degree murder and attempted murder. In 1981, he shot at two unarmed high school students from his car after an altercation, authorities said. Both victims were hit and one died at the scene. Before he was apprehended, Thompson plotted to kill the other victim so he would not be able to identify Thompson.

While in prison, Thompson stabbed another inmate on the prison yard with an inmate-manufactured knife, authorities said. The victim suffered a punctured lung as a result of the assault.

A Folsom developer who was soliciting investors for a new scheme while still on supervised release for a previous criminal conviction is headed to prison for investment fraud.

David Romo, 42, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Garland E. Burrell Jr. to 10 years and one month in prison for mail fraud related to a real estate investment scheme that defrauded investors of more than $6.9 million, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

According to court documents, Romo ran a sophisticated scheme involving numerous investments that obtained millions of dollars through a series of clever misrepresentations to homeowners and manipulations of the real estate purchase process. Using his companies Sycamore Ventures LLC, Smarie Investments LLC and Groupo Immobiliare LLC, Romo solicited individuals to fund various real estate developments. But instead of using the investor money for the intended purpose, Romo diverted funds to his personal use and to pay unrelated, prior business expenses.

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

QUESTION: I was wondering if you had any information about the Ponzi scheme case against Chris Jackson?
Submitted by: Conrad, Sacramento

ANSWER:The case of Christopher Jackson, one of five Sacramento-area residents charged in September 2011 in a $26 million real estate fraud scheme, remains in federal court in Sacramento.

Two Elk Grove residents have been charged with indoor marijuana cultivation.

A federal grand jury returned a five-count superseding indictment charging Mitchell Chang, 45, and Kelly Liang, 35, with multiple counts of conspiracy to manufacture marijuana and manufacturing of marijuana, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

According to court documents, in 2008 and again in 2013, Chang and Liang maintained multiple Elk Grove-area homes where they cultivated, manufactured and processed more than 700 marijuana plants.

The case resulted from a joint investigation by the Elk Grove Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Agency.

A member of the Skinhead criminal street gang today was convicted by a Sacramento County jury of manufacturing and transporting methamphetamine, and possessing methamphetamine for sale.

The jury also determined that 38-year-old Charles Gilbert Demar III committed the crimes for the benefit or in association with the Sacramento Skinheads street gang and that he had four prior convictions, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release.

Demar was under surveillance by undercover Citrus Heights police officers in March 2011, following the shooting death of white supremacist David Austin Lynch at Lynch's Citrus Heights home. Demar was described by police at the time as a close friend of Lynch and a "person of interest," although he was not identified as a suspect in the Lynch homicide.

The third person charged in a scheme to defraud the Raley's supermarket chain of more than $2.5 million has entered a guilty plea.

Jason Allen Smith, 47, of Foresthill pleaded guilty today in federal court in Sacramento to a conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

According to court documents, Smith, a former contract employee, conspired with David John Magana, 46, Raley's former director of advertising, and Martin Stewart Cullenward, 60, of Cool, along with others to defraud the West Sacramento-based supermarket chain. Smith took part in two of Magana's fraud schemes. Magana and Cullenward previously pleaded guilty.

A Sacramento County jury has convicted a 34-year-old man of felony grand theft auto for conducting a fraudulent lien sale of a vehicle left at his shop for repairs.

On June 9, 2010, the registered owner of a 2000 Toyota Land Cruiser left his vehicle a Alim Hussain's vehicle repair shop for transmission repairs, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release. Soon after, the owner of the vehicle left the country and never paid for the repairs.

On March 17, 2011, Hussain conducted a fraudulent lien sale of the vehicle by failing to first notify the legal owner of the Land Cruiser, Schools Financial Credit Union, about the lien sale, authorities said. As a result, the credit union learned of the lien sale after it had been removed as the legal owner of the vehicle. Hussain then sold the Land Cruiser to an unsuspecting buyer.

The second of two Yuba City brothers has been sentenced in federal court in Sacramento to 17.5 years in prison for methamphetamine and cocaine trafficking.

According to testimony presented at his six-day trial in March, Anthony Boykin, 36, and his brother, Patrick Boykin arranged and sold methamphetamine to several police informants in Yuba City between Sept. 13, 2006 and March 39, 2007, according to a federal Department of Justice news release. Anthony Boykin was sentnced by U.S. District Judge William B. Shubb.

Patrick Boykin pleaded guilty and was sentenced in October 2009, also to 17.5 years in prison.

The case resulted from an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Yuba-Sutter County NET-5 Drug Task Force.

Two men have have been sentenced jail terms for theft and fraud offenses related to their operation of a used car dealership.

Ali Maadarani, owner of M3 Motors, was sentenced to 160 days in county jail, 1,200 hours of community service and five years of formal probation. His brother, Amin Maadarani, was sentenced to one year in county jail and five years of formal probation, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release. The defendants were convicted by a jury in February and sentenced today by Sacramento Superior Court Judge Allen Sumner.

Amin Maadarani worked with his brother at the dealership. In 2010, the defendants had possession of several vehicles, including a Hummer H2, BMW 330i, Mercedes S550 and a Ford F-150. All had been ordered to be repossessed by the legal owners, which were finance companies. When the defendants notified the finance companies that they had possession of these vehicles, they falsely claimed that they were owed money for the cost of storing and towing the vehicles.

When the finance companies inquired about the condition of the vehicles, the defendants indicated that they were stripped, burned, or "down to the chassis," authorities said. Based on the representations that the vehicles were essentially worthless, the finance companies did not contest the defendants using lien sales to obtain clear title to the vehicles and recoup their costs. The Maadaranis then used, sold or attempted to sell the vehicles, all of which were in good condition.

A West Sacramento man has been convicted of robbery in a case involving a 2011 marijuana deal in which one person was shot.

A Yolo County jury last week found Wendell Joseph Coleman, 22, guilty of three counts of robbery and three counts of assault with a firearm. The jury also convicted Coleman of six enhancements for personal use of a firearm during the commission of those crimes, according to a District Attorney's Office news release.

On June 14, 2011, Coleman met with the victims Nick Gartiez, Darien Williams and Max Williams to conduct a marijuana deal, authorities said. The victims reported, and phone records confirmed, that the deal was set up through multiple phone calls between Gartiez and Coleman.

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

QUESTION: Is there any info on Garry Bradford's sentencing on April 12?
Submitted by: Bill, Sacramento

ANSWER: Garry Bradford's sentencing in U.S. District Court in Sacramento for his role in a real estate Ponzi scheme has been postponed.

A man who fled to Mexico in an attempt to avoid prosecution has been convicted of second-degree murder in the 2008 Christmas Day shooting death of 24-year-old Francisco Torres-Fernandez.

A Sacramento County jury on Thursday found Edgar Carrillo, 30, guilty in the slaying of Torres-Fernandez, a North Highlands resident who was found fatally wounded in the 2300 block of North Avenue in Del Paso Heights just after midnight Dec. 25, 2008. The jury also found Carrillo guilty of assault with a deadly weapon for pistol whipping a woman that same day, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release.

Carrillo and Torres-Fernandez were acquaintances and had reportedly gotten into an argument before the shooting.

A Sacramento County jury on Thursday convicted 31-year-old Rico Lyntice Riley of multiple sexual assault charges, including rape and tying up the female victim.

The woman was assaulted by Riley and one of her friends after she refused Riley's sexual advances, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release. The friend eventually left the woman's apartment, but Riley stayed and continued to sexually assault her.

The woman and her son found Riley four days later, and her son was able to detain him until law enforcement officers arrived.

Riley is to be sentenced May 10.

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

QUESTION: What happened to Nina Butler, who embezzled from her employer, Normac, in the late '80s or '90s?
Submitted by: Boston, Sacramento

ANSWER: Nina Rae Butler was sentenced to 10 years in prison in 1991 for stealing more than $6 million from her employer.

Two California prison inmates have been convicted of assaulting a fellow inmate in 2011.

Alexander Rey Dixon and Francisco Javier Nunez were each convicted by a jury of assault on an inmate with a deadly weapon and possession of a weapon by an inmate, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release.

On May 1, 2011, Dixon and Nunez assaulted Lance Melendez while incarcerated at California State Prison, Sacramento, in Folsom. Authorities said Melendez suffered numerous stab wounds to his back and head.

Dixon and Nunez face a possible maximum sentence of 25 years to life in prison as a result of the convictions, according to the news release. They are to be sentenced May 13 by Sacramento Superior Court Judge James Long.

Two Sacramento-area brothers pleaded guilty in today to wire fraud related to a mortgage fraud scheme.

The pleas were entered in U.S. District Court in Sacramento by Andrey Andreyev, 37, of Sacramento and Vitaliy Andreyev, 30, of Antelope, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

According to court documents, the Andreyev brothers were recruited by Vera Kuzmenko, owner of VK Tax Services, a tax preparation business, to purchase properties they could not afford. Andrey Andreyev purchased a property for $850,000 and Vitaliy Andreyev bought a property for $1.2 million.

A former Twin Rivers Police Department officer has pleaded no contest to misdemeanor assault under the color of authority.

On Sept. 17, 2010, Branche Smith, 38, grabbed two individuals by the neck in choke holds and lifted them off benches to which they had been secured by handcuffs, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release. He also pointed his Taser at the chest of a third individual handcuffed to a bench and threatened to deploy the device if that individual did not stop shaking, authorities said.

On May 30, 2011, Smith kicked a handcuffed individual in the head while that subject was restrained at the jail.

The District Attorney's Office announced that Smith was sentenced to three years of probation and ordered to serve 60 days in the county jail. He can apply to the Sheriff's Department for a work-release program.

A Fresno man who controlled marijuana growing operations in El Dorado, Placer and Tehama counties has been sentenced to more than 17 years in prison.

Uriel Ochoa-Espindola, 44, today received a 17.5-year sentence in Sacramento from U.S. District Judge William B. Shubb for his part in a marijuana trafficking conspiracy, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

Ochoa-Espindola was the leader of a massive marijuana manufacturing operation and an interstate drug distribution ring, according to court documents. His operation was based near Delhi, but he and his partners grew tens of thousands of marijuana plants in three different counties and shipped their product across the country with the aid of commercial truckers.

A former National Football League football player and a former West Sacramento claims adjuster are accused of participating in a $1.5 million scheme to defraud a Sacramento business that managed workers' compensation claims.

A federal grand jury in Sacramento has indicted Marcus Buckley, 42, of Weatherford,Texas, and Kimberly Jones, a former West Sacramento resident now living in Wichita, Kan., in the alleged scheme, according to a federal Department of Justice news release. Both were charged with five counts of wire fraud, and Buckley was charged with six counts of money laundering.

According to the indictment, Buckley was a professional football player with the National Football League between 1993 and 2000, playing seven seasons with the New York Giants. During that period, the Giants had workers' compensation coverage through Pennsylvania Manufacturers' Association Insurance Group.

Charges of filing false tax returns have been added in a federal case against three men accused of stealing more than $18 million from the United Auburn Indian Community, which owns the Thunder Valley Casino Resort in Lincoln.

The new charges against Bart Wayne Volen, 53, of San Diego and Hawaii; Greg Scott Baker, 46, of Newcastle; and Darrell Patrick Hinz, 48, of Cameron Park, are included in a superseding indictment brought today by a federal grand jury in Sacramento, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

In August 2012, the three men were charged with conspiring to commit mail and wire fraud, and money laundering as part of a scheme to defraud the United Auburn Indian Community. Today's superseding indictment alleges that in 2006 and 2007, Volen and Hinz filed false tax returns in connection with the fraud, and Baker filed false tax returns from 2006 through 2009.

Seven people, including three from Sacramento and one from Roseville, have been charged by federal authorities in a case involving an alleged conspiracy to sell millions of dollars worth of stolen goods on eBay.

Arrested and charged in a criminal complaint with participating in a conspiracy to commit mail fraud are Jason Samuel Schroeder, 33, John Judah Young, 32, and Maribel Martinez, 27, all of Sacramento; Joshua Roy Payne 27, of Vacaville; Kirk Arthell Sanderson, 34, of Walnut Creek; and David Reed, 26, of Santa Barbara.

Payne was also charged with lying to federal agents, and Schroeder was detained as a flight risk, according to a federal Department of Justice news release. Andrea Lynn Turner, 31, of Roseville was also charged but has not been arrested, officials said.

Arraignment is scheduled for April 24.

A South Lake Tahoe marijuana dispensary owner has been sentenced to five years in federal prison for marijuana trafficking.

Gennaro DiMatteo, 43, was sentenced today in Sacramento by U.S. District Judge Kimberly J. Mueller. DiMatteo had entered a guilty plea in January. As part of his plea agreement, DiMatteo will forfeit more than $40,000 to the United States, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

In pleading guilty, DiMatteo admitted that during a search of his South Lake Tahoe residence, law enforcement agents discovered a hidden door that led to several subsurface rooms under the structure. Equipment set up in the rooms was standard for indoor marijuana cultivation gardens.

A Citrus Heights man previously convicted of sex offenses was arraigned today in federal court in Sacramento on charges of receiving child pornography and failing to register as a sex offender.

Travis Marshall Grey, 29, entered a not guilty plea in proceedings before Magistrate Judge Dale A. Drozd, according to federal court online records.

Between Jan. 25 and Jan. 29, Grey allegedly received images of child pornography through the Internet. In addition, in December 2012 and January 2013, while living in Citrus Heights, Grey failed to register as a sex offender, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

A Sacramento woman has been sentenced to three years and one month in prison for her role in a $1.3 million tax fraud scheme.

Nadiyah Muhammad Woods, 34, is the last of three defendants to be sentenced in the case, which involved a scheme to obtain tax refunds by filing false tax returns, according to a federal Department of Justice news release. She was sentenced in Sacramento by U.S. District Judge Kimberly J. Mueller and will be subject to three years of supervised release following her time in prison. Woods also was ordered to pay $902,617 in restitution.

According to court documents, Woods and two other defendants -- Nakia Renee Vaughn, 27, and Tomisha Lee McKinnie, 25, both of Sacramento -- filed false tax returns using TurboTax, an online tax preparation software. To operate the scheme, the defendants obtained Green Dot and other debit cards offered through the TurboTax software that were loaded with the tax refunds of taxpayer victims whose identities they used. They had the tax refunds mailed to various addresses under their control in Sacramento County.

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

QUESTION: Last July, neighbors and I were evacuated from our homes because a young man named Marcus Kiplinger had 6 pounds of C4 in his garage. I haven't read anything about it since the initial news reports. Can you please find out if he was charged with anything and, if so, whether he was found guilty, sentenced, etc.?
Submitted by: Chelsea, Sacramento

ANSWER: Marcus Jerome Kiplinger, 28, was arrested July 1, 2012 after plastic explosives were found at his Arden Arcade home.

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

QUESTION: What is the status of Vera Kuzmenko, who was indicted in a mortgage fraud case?
Submitted by: Edward, Sacramento

ANSWER: Vera Kuzmenko, a tax preparer, is one of more than 80 people who have been indicted in 30 cases of alleged mortgage fraud filed in U.S. District Court in Sacramento and involving members of the area's Slavic community, according to stories in The Bee.

A Woodland man has been found guilty of sexually molesting a 2-year-old boy.

After 10 hours of deliberation over two days, a Yolo County jury on Thursday convicted John "Tim" Ganthner, 46, of two felony counts of sexual assault of a child younger than 10 years old, four felony counts of physical abuse of a child and three additional enhancements for inflicting great bodily injury on a child younger than 5, according to a Yolo County District Attorney's Office news release.

In the morning of Aug. 23, 2011, Ganthner was left alone to watch the child while the youngster's grandmother performed volunteer work for a local charity, authorities said. When the grandmother returned about 12:30 p.m., she noticed that the child had severe injuries to his private areas and chest.

A Sacramento man was indicted today in a federal firearms trafficking case.

Dejon Andrade, 27, is charged with one count of unlawful dealing in firearms, five counts of interstate travel with intent to unlawfully deal in firearms and nine counts of illegal transportation of firearms acquired outside of his state of residence, according to a federal Department of Justice new release.

Court documents allege that Andrade used a Nevada ID to buy guns in Nevada, although he resided in California. He was prohibited from purchasing or possessing guns in California because of parole conditions, officials said, but he was able to buy firearms in Reno by providing false information on his federal firearm purchase paperwork.

A Nevada County man pleaded guilty today in federal court to maintaining a marijuana dispensary in Sacramento.

John Lester Gross III, 48, of Rough and Ready admitted maintaining a drug-involved premises, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

According to court documents, Gross helped organize and maintain a marijuana dispensary on P Street in Sacramento. It was supplied with marijuana grown on Gross' property in Rough and Ready, near Grass Valley.

An Oakland man has been sentenced to seven years in prison in a case involving the sex trafficking of a 14-year-old south Sacramento girl.

Jamir Imari Tatum, 20, was sentenced today in federal court in Sacramento by U.S. District Judge Morrison C.England Jr. Tatum will be subject to 10 years of supervised release following his prison term and will be required to register as a sex offender, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

According to court documents, in January 2012, Tatum met the 14-year-old victim outside her house. He took her to a motel in Sacramento and took several photographs of her engaged in sexuality explicit conduct. On Feb. 21, 2012, law enforcement agents were notified that the victim had run away with Tatum.

A Carmichael couple have entered no contest pleas in the 2009 death of a parolee whose body was found in a rural area of El Dorado County.

Charles Gaskin, 48, pleaded no contest today to the first-degree murder of Neil Hayes, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release. Gaskin's wife and co-defendant, Sandra Sheaves, pleaded no-contest to a felony charge of being an accessory to murder. Gaskin also admitted an enhancement for the use of a deadly weapon, and his wife admitted an enhancement for misuse of information obtained from the Megan's Law website.

Hayes, 66, was released on parole in June 2009 and contacted Gaskin, whom he had met while both were incarcerated in the same prison, authorities said. Gaskin and Sheaves allowed Hayes to stay in their garage because he had no permanent residence.

A California State Prison, Sacramento inmate has been convicted of a 2010 attack on a fellow inmate.

A Sacramento County jury today found Steven Thompson, 50, guilty of assault on another inmate, personally inflicting great bodily injury and possessing a weapon in prison.

While incarcerated at the prison in Folsom, Thompson stabbed another inmate on the yard with an inmate-manufactured knife, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release. The victim suffered a punctured lung.

Thompson faces up to 53 years to life in prison for the offenses. He is to be sentenced May 3 by Superior Court Judge Maryanne Gilliard.

A man convicted of sexually assaulting three women in the south Sacramento area in 2011 has been sentenced to 90 years to life in prison.

Ladell Lamont Sanders, 42, was convicted last month by a Sacramento County jury of six charges, including rape and forcible oral copulation, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release. Sanders was sentenced today by Sacramento Superior Court Judge Eugene Balonon.

The three women were assaulted in separate incidents, which occurred Nov. 15, Dec. 10 and Dec. 13, 2011. In each case, Sanders threatened the victim by stating he had a gun or by displaying a gun, authorities said. He then drove the women to areas where he sexually assaulted them. After the assaults, Sanders fled, leaving the victims stranded in the remote area.

Sanders was determined to be a suspect after a Sacramento police officer recognized the description of the suspect and the suspect's car from a vehicle stop he made Nov. 1, 2011, in the same area. Sanders also was determined to be a suspect in the Dec. 13, 2011, sexual assault through the use of DNA analysis performed by the Sacramento County District Attorney's Crime Lab.

A mother and daughter have pleaded guilty in a series of burglaries committed in the Sacramento area during January.

Helen Costello, 43, and Shirley Costello, 22, pleaded guilty today to five counts of residential burglary as serious and violent felonies, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release. They entered the pleas before Sacramento Superior Court Judge Michael Sweet. Each is to be sentenced to eight years in prison April 12.

The women engaged in a series of residential burglaries during January. Their targets were elderly victims in the Tahoe Park, Meadowview and Arden Arcade areas, authorities said. They approached victims and claimed to be their former neighbors, or said they were interested in buying a home or used automobile in the area. The women often asked to use the victim's bathroom. Once inside the residence, one of the women distracted the victim while the other searched for valuables.

A 21-year-old man has been sentenced to 65 years to life in prison for sexually assaulting children.

Santiago Sanchez was convicted by a Sacramento County jury in February of multiple counts of lewd acts with a minor and sexual assault charges. The jury also found true that Sanchez molested more than one victim in the commission of these offenses, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release.

Sanchez was sentenced today by Sacramento Superior Court Judge Geoffrey Goodman.

On Aug. 2, 2011, Sanchez was babysitting the 8 and 10-year-old victims, along with their four brothers. One of the children walked into a bedroom and discovered Sanchez partially unclothed and on top of his 8-year-old sister, authorities said. In an effort to get help, the boy rode his bike to several neighbors' homes and then to a local gas station, where he called 911. Officers learned soon afterward that Sanchez had engaged in lewd acts with the two sisters over a period of two days before his arrest.

A former web producer for KTXL Fox 40, a Tribune Co.-owned television station in Sacramento, was indicted today in Sacramento for allegedly conspiring with members of the hacker group "Anonymous" to hack into and alter a Tribune Co. website.

Matthew Keys, 26, of Secaucus, N.J., was charged in the Eastern District of California with one count each of conspiracy to transmit information to damage a protected computer, transmitting information to damage a protected computer and attempted transmission of information to damage a protected computer. He was employed by Fox 40 as its web producer but was terminated in October 2010, according to a federal Department of Justices news release.

Keys did not respond to phone and email requests for comment. On Twitter he told followers this afternoon: "Im fine. I found out the way most of you did: From Twitter. Tonight I'm goiing to take a break. Tomorrow, business as ususal."

A West Sacramento man has been sentenced to 21 years in state prison for attacking his girlfriend and then threatening her in an effort to prevent her from testifying against him.

Michael Robert Hernandez III, 33, pleaded no contest to two "strike" felonies and multiple enhancements, including assault by means of force likely to produce great bodily injury, infliction of great bodily injury due to domestic violence and dissuading a witness, according to a Yolo County District Attorney's Office news release. He was sentenced March 7 by Yolo Superior Court Judge Paul Richardson.

On Oct. 11, 2012, West Sacramento police officers were dispatched to a residence on Circle Drive regarding a report of a fight between Hernandez and the victim. A verbal argument became a physical fight when Hernandez pushed the woman to the floor and choked her, causing her to nearly lose consciousness before he released his grip, officials said. Hernandez then reportedly punched and kicked the victim multiple times. While the woman was lying on the floor, Hernandez straddled her and choked her again, this time to the point of unconsciousness.

A man who threatened his girlfriend in an effort to discourage her from pursuing a domestic violence case against him is headed to prison.

The Sacramento County District Attorney's Office announced today that 27-year-old Jorge Cabrales was sentenced by Superior Court Judge Cheryl Meegan to 22 years in state prison. A jury convicted Cabrales of felony domestic violence causing great bodily injury, witness intimidation and criminal threats.

Cabrales assaulted his girlfriend, breaking her nose, according to a District Attorney's Office news release. Aware that she had reported the assault to police, he called her several times the next day in an effort to dissuade her from cooperating with law enforcement.

An immigration consultant characterized by authorities as the mastermind of a marriage fraud scheme pleaded guilty today in federal court in Sacramento.

Sergey Potepalov, 57, of Citrus Heights admitted to his role in a scheme that involved sham marriages, according to a federal Department of Justice news release. He is to be sentenced Aug. 15 by U.S. District Judge Morrison C. England Jr.

Potepalov, a naturalized U.S. citizen of Russian descent, was the leader of a scheme with 13 other defendants who were charged in July 2011 with conspiring to commit marriage fraud, to defraud the United States, to make false statements and to induce foreign nationals to enter and remain in the United States, according to court records.

An Antelope man has been sentenced and a Sacramento man has pleaded guilty in separate child pornography cases.

Stephen Graeff, 60, of Antelope, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Kimberly J. Mueller to 15 years in prison, to be followed by a lifetime of supervised release for distributing child pornography, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

Graeff maintained a collection of approximately 1,020 files of child pornography, according to court records. He shared and posted the child pornography images from his computer to others on the Internet.

A Rancho Cordova man has pleaded guilty in federal court in Sacramento to engaging in child sexual exploitation.

According to court documents, Brandon Marks, 25, attempted to entice a minor to engage in sexual activity. In addition, between April and June 2012, he received and shared child pornography, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

Marks is to be sentenced May 15 by U.S. District Judge Kimberly J. Mueller.

A Roseville man whose daughter was arrested last year in connection with the death of his granddaughter has pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography.

Daniel Harrison McGrath, 58, of Roseville pleaded guilty today in federal court in Sacramento to possessing more than 3,000 images and videos of child pornography, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

The pornography was discovered during a police investigation into the death of McGrath's 2-year-old granddaughter. McKinley Wilder's body was found in McGrath's home April 4. Denise Marie McGrath Wilder, the child's mother and McGrath's daughter, has been charged with cruelty to a child and neglect in connection with the youngster's death and awaits trial in Placer Superior Court.

A West Sacramento man has been sentenced to 26 years and eight months in prison for a gang assault in which he struck a youth in the head with a hammer.

A Yolo County jury convicted Christopher Lee Castillo, 21, for his role in a March 2010 attack on two black juveniles. He was sentenced Friday by Yolo Superior Court Judge Stephen L. Mock.

The two victims and their family had been harassed by gang members during the two months before the assault, according to a Yolo County District Attorney's Office news release. When the two victims went to confront the gang members, they were ambushed by numerous gang members armed with weapons and a pit bull. Castillo struck one of the victims in the head with a hammer, creating a deep gash, authorities said.

A Brentwood man has been sentenced to five years in prison for embezzling from his employer, a Davis-based firm.

Benjamin Chaney, 33, was convicted in January of grand theft, embezzlement, one "aggravated white collar crime" enhancement, and two counts of state income tax evasion relating to theft from his employer, according to a Yolo County District Attorney's Office news release. He was sentenced Friday by Yolo County Superior Court Judge Stephen Mock.

Chaney had been employed as chief financial officer for Harper Model Home Maintenance, a company owned by his former mother-in-law and father-in-law. Between 2003 and 2007, he embezzled more than $300,000 from his employer by paying his personal expenses with corporate funds and altering the records to cover the fraud, officials said.

A man who spent time at a Rancho Cordova residence has been sentenced in federal court in Sacramento to 14 years and two months in prison for distributing child pornography.

Joseph Cantrelle, 61, who lived most recently in Vacaville, also will be subject to 10 years of supervised release following his prison term, according to a federal Department of Justice news release. He was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Garland E. Burrell.

According to court documents, law enforcement agents searched residences where Cantrelle stayed in Napa and Rancho Cordova. They found that Cantrelle maintained on his computer a collection of approximately 561 videos and 4,079 still images depicting minors engaged in various types of sexually explicit conduct. He shared and posted the images from his computer to others on the Internet.

A 42-year-old man has been convicted of sexually assaulting three women in the south Sacramento area in November and December of 2011.

A Sacramento County jury convicted Ladell Lamont Sanders of six charges, including forcible sexual intercourse and forcible oral copulation, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release.

The assaults occurred Nov. 15, Dec. 10 and Dec. 13 of 2011. Sanders threatened each victim by stating that he had a gun or by displaying a gun, officials said. He then drove the victims to remote areas where he sexually assaulted them. After the assaults, he fled, leaving the victims stranded in the remote area.

A Citrus Heights man was arrested today, accused of participating in a credit card fraud scheme and money laundering activities.

A federal grand jury in Sacramento on Thursday returned a 36-count indictment against Oganes Serobyan, 40. The indictment was unsealed after his arrest today. He is to be arraigned Friday, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

According to the indictment, in November 2009, Serobyan established a sham business, Link & Work Holdings LLC, which purported to sell "e-books" online. Between November 2010 and May 2011, the company is alleged to have unlawfully obtained American Express charge card numbers and made tens of thousands of unauthorized charges on them that were ultimately credited to Link & Work Holdings' bank account.

Four people have been indicted for growing marijuana in seven houses in Elk Grove and Sacramento.

A federal grand jury in Sacramento returned a two-count indictment Wednesday, according to a federal Department of Justice news release. Charged with crimes related to cultivating marijuana in the houses are Zhiqiang Liu, 59, of Oakland; Shihong Chen, 47 and Qinghong Li, 44, both of San Francisco; and Jun Mou Peng, 39, whose city of residence was not listed.

According to court documents, on Jan. 30, law enforcement agents conducted searches and seized 2,912 marijuana plants, approximately 100 pounds of processed marijuana and more than $4,000 in cash. Agents found the defendants in grow houses and arrested them.

A Galt man has admitted to destroying his car with intention of collecting the insurance money.

Anthony Arinaga, 34, admitted to a felony charge of vehicular arson with the intent to defraud his auto insurance company, a strike under California's Three Strikes Law, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release.

Arinaga had a vehicle that needed frequent and costly repairs, so he and a friend decided to destroy the car, authorities said. Arinaga planned to file a false stolen vehicle report with police and a false insurance claim.

A Placerville man pleaded guilty today in federal court in Sacramento to participating in an interstate marijuana distribution conspiracy.

Dylan Hudson, 26, admitted to conspiring to manufacture, distribute and possess with intent to distribute marijuana, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

According to court documents, Hudson was in charge of an interstate marijuana trafficking conspiracy. More than 1,100 pounds of processed marijuana, along with more than $329,000 in cash and eight firearms were seized during the investigation, authorities said.

A man convicted of a 2004 Oak Park murder has been sentenced to 25 years to life in prison, plus one year for use of a deadly weapon.

Ignacio Bulahan, 37, was convicted last month of first-degree in death of Thyotis Jackson, 22.

The murder was unsolved until 2010, when an individual came forward with information that assisted the Sacramento Police Department in linking the murder to Bulahan, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release.

According to testimony at trial, Jackson was a cross-dressing prostitute whom Bulahan had propositioned outside a store on Broadway near First Avenue. A dispute arose when Jackson informed Bulahan that he was a man, and Bulahan slashed Jackson's throat during the fight.

A federal fugitive who made hoax bomb threats, claiming that letter bombs were going to be delivered to residences in Rocklin and Auburn, has been sentenced to three years and five months in prison.

Stephen J. Isoczky Jr., 60, of Los Angeles was sentenced today in federal court in Sacramento by U.S. District Judge Kimberly J. Mueller for making bomb threats and lying to federal agents, according to a federal Department of Justice news release. He will be subject to three years of supervised release following his time in prison. Judge Mueller also ordered Isoczky to pay $6,890 in restitution to the United States Postal Inspection Service for the resources spent in dealing with the bomb threats.

According to court documents, on Sept. 2, 2012, Isoczky contacted the national telephone network of the U.S. Postal Inspection service, claiming to be a concerned citizen alerting authorities of impending letter bombs. He claimed the bombs were going to be delivered shortly to a residence in Rocklin.

A man arrested last September in a field of marijuana plants has been convicted by a Yolo County jury of cultivation of marijuana and possession of marijuana for sale.

The jury also found that 57-year-old Fidel Alvarez was armed with a firearm during the commission of these crimes, according to a Yolo County District Attorney's Office news release.

On Sept. 6, 2012, agents from with the Yolo County Narcotics Enforcement Team and the Mountain and Valley Marijuana Investigations Team discovered a marijuana grow on public lands off Highway 16 in Yolo County. The marijuana grow contained more than 500 plants that would have been ready for harvest within a few days, officials said. Agents found Alvarez walking through the field of plants dressed in camouflage clothing and carrying a .22-caliber rifle and a homemade flash suppressor.

A South Lake Tahoe police officer was indicted today by a federal grand jury in Sacramento for multiple counts of witness tampering and obstruction of an official proceeding.

John Gerald Poland, 44, was arrested Jan. 23 following an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, South Lake Tahoe Police Department and the California Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement.

According to court documents, on June 29, 2011, Poland, interfered with a federal investigation of a South Lake Tahoe gang member. Poland is alleged to have persuaded the gang member's girlfriend to conceal and destroy evidence.

An Esparto man has been found guilty of using his truck as a deadly weapon in an assault on a motorcyclist.

A Yolo County jury returned the verdict against 39-year-old Joshua Shawn Bracy on Jan. 30, according to a Yolo County District Attorney's Office news release.

On the morning of Aug. 29, 2012, the victim was riding his motorcycle along Beamer Street on his way to work in Woodland. Bracy mistakenly believed the motorcycle had been stolen from him, and he began to chase the victim with his Dodge truck, officials said.

A 29-year-old man has been convicted of robbing an elderly woman in a West Sacramento parking lot, then pepper spraying bystanders who intervened.

A Yolo County jury on Monday found Thomas Jones IV guilty of robbing the woman, who was disabled, the afternoon of Oct. 27, 2012, as she went to the Little Caesars Pizza restaurant near West Capitol Avenue and Jefferson Boulevard, according to a Yolo County District Attorney's Office news release. Jones rode his bicycle up to the woman from behind and grabbed her purse.

The commotion and the woman's screams drew three employees from a nearby business, who chased Jones as he tried to escape with the purse. The employees pursued him across West Capitol Avenue and cornered him in a loading dock. When they attempted to detain Jones, he used a large can of Mace to spray them, officials said.

A 37-year-old Sacramento man has been sentenced to two and a half years in prison for possessing child pornography.

Oliver P. Kim was sentenced by U.S. District Judge William B. Shubb. Kim also will be subject to 10 years of supervised release following his prison term, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

Between Feb. 9 and March 23, 2011, agents identified a computer at Kim's address offering files of child pornography through a file-sharing network, according to court documents

A man who pleaded no contest to attempted murder and carjacking has been sentenced to eight years and eight months in state prison.

Jose Camilo, 32, was sentenced today by Sacramento Superior Court Judge John P. Winn.

On March 30, 2011, Camilo intentionally rode his bicycle into the side of a car waiting at a stoplight at Florin and Power Inn roads, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release. He then entered the car through the passenger door, beat the 51-year-old driver, forced her out of the car and sped away.

Andy Furillo

afurllo@sacbee.com

Richard Joseph Hirschfield sat impassively today while a Sacramento judge sentenced him to the death penalty for the murders of UC Davis "sweethearts" John Riggins and Sabrina Gonsalves more than three decades ago.

Sacramento Superior Court Judge Michael W. Sweet told Hirschfield that pending the outcome of his appeals, "you shall be put to death by a manner and means prescribed by law" for the Dec. 20, 1980, killings of the two 18-year-olds who were abducted after working as volunteers on a production of the Davis Children's Nutrcracker.

His voice waivering, Sweet told the parents of the two murdered students, "I recognize there is nothing I can say that can adequately convey anything that will console you, that your lives changed permanently in the worst possible way. You have endured so much. The tortured history of this case must have taken away any hope you had that the person responsible for these acts would be discovered and held to answer.

"Hopefully, with the jury's verdicts in this case, they have provided you some measure of closure and comfort, and that justice in some small way has and will be served," Sweet said.

A 27-year-old Citrus Heights man has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for possessing child pornography.

Derrick James Kennedy was sentenced today in Sacramento by U.S. District Judge Morrison C. England Jr. Kennedy also will be subject to 10 years of supervised release following his prison term, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

Kennedy pleaded guilty in March to one count of possession of child pornography. According to court documents, law enforcement agents traced user-sharing files of child pornography on a peer-to-peer file-sharing program to Kennedy's Citrus Heights residence.

A former El Dorado County man has pleaded guilty to wire fraud in connection with a multimillion-dollar investment fraud scheme.

Daniel Chartraw, 39, entered the plea today in U.S. District Court in Sacramento. He is to be sentenced May 2 by U.S. District Judge Morrison C. England Jr.

Between Jan. 1, 2007, and Nov. 30, 2011, according to court documents, Chartraw defrauded numerous investors by falsely representing investments in mines, mining and refinery equipment, oil commodities, precious metals concentrate, and multimillion-dollar certificates of deposit.

By Darrell Smith
dvsmith@sacbee.com

A Yolo County judge on Thursday rejected claims by a victims' advocacy group that a video showing the June 2008 shooting death of a Yolo County Sheriff's deputy played at trial and later aired by Sacramento's KCRA-TV violated the privacy of the slain deputy's family.

Attorney Nina Salarno Ashford of Crime Victims United represented the family of Deputy Sheriff Tony Diaz, killed by Marco Topete following a chase near Dunnigan.

Salarno Ashford argued for a protective order stopping viewing of the dashboard camera video that captured the shooting, citing privacy provisions in what is known as Marsy's Law that are designed to protect the privacy of crime victims and their families. Members of the Diaz family attended the hearing but did not speak with reporters.

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

QUESTION: What was Dion Dametrice Tolliver sentenced to for sexual assault on multiple children?
Submitted by: Misty, Sacramento

ANSWER: Dion Dametrice Tolliver was sentenced Jan. 11 to 25 years to life in state prison, according to Sacramento Superior Court online records.

A Nevada County man has been sentenced to prison and ordered to forfeit $2.4 million worth of property in a case involving marijuana cultivation and structuring of cash transactions to avoid reporting requirements.

U.S. District Judge Lawrence K. Karlton today sentenced Charles Miller Hilkey Jr., 58, a resident of the Nevada City area, to four years and one month in prison. The judge also ordered Hilkey to forfeit to the United States 25 pieces of property in Oregon and California valued at more than $2.4 million, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

Hilkey pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Kimberly J. Mueller on Feb. 21, 2012. He was taken into custody following today's hearing.

A Plumas County man has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for attempting to entice a minor to engage in sex acts.

U.S. District Judge Kimberly J. Mueller also sentenced Larry Gorbet Jr., 33, of Chester to 20 years of supervised release, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

According to court documents, on Sept. 25, 2011, Gorbet met with his cousin and her friend, a 13-year-old girl, in the city of Susanville. During the meeting, Gorbet provided the girls with marijuana and talked about the prospects of the 13-year-old becoming his girlfriend.

A Rocklin man was sentenced today to 10 years in prison for possessing child pornography.

U.S. District Judge Lawrence K. Karlton also sentenced John Patrick Frost, 28, to a lifetime of supervised release following his prison term, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

Frost pleaded guilty in October to one count of possession of child pornography. According to court documents, on March 12, 2009, a photo-sharing website reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children Cybertipline that a user had posted child pornography to its page. Further investigation led to a Placer County residence where Frost spent time.

Three Yuba County men have been arrested on federal hate crime charges for what authorities allege was a racially motivated attack on an African American woman and a white man in Marysville in April 2011.

Billy James Hammett, 28, and Perry Sylvester Jackson, 27, both of Marysville, were arrested today and arraigned before U.S. Magistrate Judge Dale A. Drozd. Both entered not-guilty pleas, according to a federal Department of Justice news release. They are scheduled to appear before U.S. District Judge John A. Mendez on Jan. 29.

The third man, Anthony Merrell Tyler, 32, of Olivehurst, surrendered today in Sacramento and is to be arraigned Wednesday.

The owner of a mortgage company in Elk Grove has been convicted in a multimillion-dollar mortgage fraud scheme.

After a 10-day trial, a federal jury in Sacramento found Hoda Samuel, 60, of Elk Grove guilty of conspiracy to commit mortgage fraud and of 30 individual counts of mail fraud, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

Samuel, a licensed real estate broker, was the owner and principal operator of Liberty Real Estate & Investment Co., a real estate agency, and Liberty Mortgage Co, a mortgage brokerage business, according to evidence presented during the trial. Between April 5, 2006 and Feb. 26, 2007, Samuel's companies facilitated 30 residential real estate transactions that defrauded the lending institutions that provided the financing.

A Solano County man has been found guilty of burglarizing two Davis homes in July 2011.

A Yolo County jury last week convicted Jimmy Medel, 45, of two counts of residential burglary, according to a Yolo County District Attorney's office news release.

On July 13, 2011, after dropping his wife off at work in Davis, Medel drove around the city and stopped about 8 a.m. at a residence on Stanford Place. Authorities said Medel broke in through the front door and went through the home to the garage.

A man convicted of first-degree murder for fatally shooting a man during an attempted carjacking has been sentenced to 38 years to life in prison.

A Sacramento County jury in October found Taurus Aquarius Baker, 23, guilty of the February 2006 murder of Joseph Wayne Bush, with the special circumstance that the crime was committed during an attempted robbery, as well as an unrelated 2009 robbery in Elk Grove, according to a District Attorney's Office news release. Baker was sentenced today by Sacramento Superior Court Judge Steve White.

Authorities said that Baker shot and killed Bush, 38, about 1 p.m. in a shopping center parking lot at 6051 Mack Road in south Sacramento. They said Bush had dropped his young son off at a nearby school shortly before he was murdered.

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

QUESTION: Did Daniel Chartraw get convicted?
Submitted by: Butch, El Dorado Hills

ANSWER: A trial date has not been set for former El Dorado Hills resident Daniel Chartraw.

A man with a history of robbery convictions over more than three decades has been sentenced to 25 years to life in prison under California's three strikes law.

Michael Neal Johnson, 53, was convicted of robbing the downtown River City Bank in Sacramento on Jan. 25, 2012, and was found to have committed three prior bank robberies. He was sentenced today by Sacramento Superior Court Judge Gary Mullen.

Johnson's criminal record dates back to a 1980 robbery conviction when he was a juvenile in Santa Clara, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release.

In 1983, he was convicted of possession of stolen property. In 1985, he was convicted of robbing a savings and loans bank and was federally prosecuted in the Eastern District of California.

A Sacramento County jury has convicted a 22-year-old parolee of multiple charges, including attempted murder, attempted robbery and use of a gun.

On June 16, 2011, Lawrence Jackio and an accomplice broke into an occupied residence and attempted to rob two homeowners at gunpoint, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release. One victim was pistol whipped, and Jackio shot the other in the stomach, causing serious injuries.

At the time, Jackio was on parole for a residential burglary conviction.

He is to be sentenced March 1 by Sacramento Superior Court Judge Michael Savage.

A Brentwood couple indicted by a Yolo County grand jury in 2010 awaits sentencing after pleading to charges in the embezzlement from a Davis business.

Kara Leigh Brown, 43, on Friday pleaded to a charge of accessory to a felony for assisting in the theft and embezzlement by her husband, Benjamin Joseph Chaney, 32. On the same date, Chaney admitted that he embezzled between $100,000 and $500,000. Chaney previously had pleaded to the majority of charges in the case involving multiple theft-related felonies and felony tax evasion, according to a Yolo County District Attorney's Office news release. Brown agreed to pay $340,000 in restitution to the victims.

From 2003 to 2007, Chaney was employed as chief financial officer for Harper Model Home Maintenance, a Davis company owned by the Harper family and specializing in model home cleaning. Family members did most of the work themselves, but as the business grew, they hired Chaney, their son-in-law at the time, in various management positions, authorities said. He eventually became the chief financial officer.

A man convicted of carjacking and robbery has been sentenced to 35 years and eight months in prison.

Dante Perkins, 21, was convicted by a jury in November of two counts of carjacking, robbery and being a felon in possession of a firearm. The jury also found true that Perkins possessed and used a firearm in committing the crimes, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release. He was sentenced by Superior Court Judge Geoffrey Goodman.

On Feb. 20, 2012, a young mother and her 1-year-old child were sitting in front of a store. The father had gone inside to purchase an item and left the keys in the ignition while the two waited for him.

A Redwood City man has pleaded no contest to second-degree murder and gross vehicular manslaughter for his role in a Highway 50 crash last February that left three people dead and two others injured.

On Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 5, Christopher Thomas Rigsby drove to South Lake Tahoe to watch the game with friends at Harvey's Casino. After several drinks, he drove back to Sacramento County early the following morning. He was first observed speeding westbound on Highway 50 near the Sunrise Boulevard exit. Minutes later, he was seen speeding eastbound in the westbound lanes of Highway 50.

Rigsby's vehicle collided head-on with a Pontiac Aztec at estimated speeds of 70 to 90 mph, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release.

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

QUESTION: I was wondering if you have more information on Garry Bradford. He was arrested on approximately April 19, 2011.
Submitted by: Bill, Sacramento

ANSWER:Garry Bradford pleaded guilty in August 2011 to four counts of federal wire fraud in connection with a real estate Ponzi scheme.

A 74-year-old man, dubbed the "fedora bandit" by law enforcement agents, pleaded guilty today in federal court in Sacramento to three counts of armed bank robbery.

David Griffith Osborne, formerly of Carson City, pleaded guilty to robbing the American River Bank, 9750 Business Park Drive, in Rancho Cordova on June 3, 2010, as well as the Bank of the West in Gridley on April 26, 2010, and the Chase Bank in Paradise on June 29, 2010, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

Osborne also admitted to four other bank robberies at Bank of the West branches in Grass Valley, Dec. 22, 2009, and March 31, 2010; South Lake Tahoe, Feb. 18, 2010; Kings Beach, March 9, 2010.

A 71-year-old Sacramento attorney has pleaded no contest to a felony count of grand theft and three misdemeanor counts of collecting illegal upfront fees for loan modification services.

Sacramento Superior Court Judge Kevin McCormick today sentenced Frank Ferris to five years of formal probation and ordered him to serve one year in the county jail. Ferris also was ordered to pay $72,271.90 in victim restitution.

While representing a victim in a civil case, Ferris, a licensed attorney, received $10,000 in trust to apply toward a settlement of the victim's legal matter. Instead, Ferris misappropriated the funds for his personal use, causing a default judgment to be entered against the victim, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release.

A woman who pleaded guilty to embezzling and gambling away $288,000 in Regional Transit District funds has been sentenced to three years and eight months in state prison.

Christine Dupree, 51, who was employed as a cashier by Regional Transit, admitted embezzling public funds, forgery and to an excessive taking enhancement, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release. She was sentenced today by Sacramento Superior Court Judge Kevin McCormick.

From Oct. 27, 2008, to May 9, 2012, Dupree embezzled $288,000 in funds that RT received from outlets, such as government agencies and schools, which sold monthly passes for RT, officials said. Dupree falsified records and used unsold inventories to cover her thefts from detection.

By Denny Walsh
dwalsh@sacbee.com

Five people who protested U.S. use of drones at Beale Air Force Base in October were arraigned today in Sacramento federal court on misdemeanor charges of unlawfully entering military property. Through their attorneys, they pleaded not guilty and asked for a trial.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Carolyn K. Delaney set a non-jury trial for April 15.

The five defendants are Sharon Delgado, David Hartsough, Janet Hartsough, Jane Kesselman and Shirley Osgood.

Prosecuter Nicholas Fogg moved to dismiss four others cited at the Oct. 30 protest but not named in the charging document filed today by Fogg. Delaney granted the motion. Why the government did not pursue prosecution of those four is not yet clear.

The hearing was preceded by a drone protest on the plaza in front of the federal courthouse at 5th and I streets in Sacramento. The defendants were among the 35 to 40 protestors. Some displayed banners and signs with messages such as "Stop Killer Drones."

Photo caption: Protestors hold signs in front of the Federal Courthouse in Sacramento on Tuesday morning to show their support for the nine defendants who appeared in court on trespass charges for actions taken in October at Beale Air Force Base. Photo by Randy Pench / rpench@sacbee.com

Sacramento County's long-standing district attorney, Jan Scully, announced today she will not seek re-election next year, ending a 34-year career in the office.

Scully was first elected in 1994. Before that, she had served as a deputy district attorney for 15 years.

In an email to her staff, Scully wrote that her emotions are mixed; that the office has been her "second family/home" but that she is looking forward to a new chapter in her life.

She also laid out a list of goals for her remaining two years at the helm of the organization, including cultivating a future leadership team, seeing a proposed regional family justice center come to fruition and restoring positions and programs as funding becomes available. Among the programs she mentioned were the reviews of officer-involved shootings, a practice Scully ended last summer because of budget cuts.

"I cannot find adequate words to express the pride and love I have for our office and for all of you, my DA family," she wrote to her staff. "I am so proud of the work we have done and will continue to do together to make our community safe."

A man convicted of stalking a woman, installing spyware on her computer and hidden cameras in her bedroom has been sentenced to 19 years and four months in prison.

Jose Moreno, 32, will also be required to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life. A jury last month convicted him of 21 counts, including stalking, first-degree burglary, wiretapping and installing spyware. He was sentenced today by Sacramento Superior Court Judge Ernest Sawtelle.

When the victim ended her relationship with Moreno in July 2010, he repeatedly broke into her home, stole personal items, installed spyware on her computer and installed hidden cameras in her bedroom, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release. When the victim found the hidden cameras, she left her apartment and stayed with a friend.

A Sacramento jury convicted Nathaniel Carter in the shooting death of another man two years ago in a pot robbery attempt.

The jury returned the verdict against Carter on Thursday, finding him guilty of first degree murder and attempted robbery in the Oct. 29, 2010 homicide of Steven Carmassi.

Carter, with co-defendants Latice Collins and DeJohng Taylor, tried to rob Carmassi at gunpoint as he sat in his truck in the parking lot of a supermarket on Garfield Avenue near Madison Avenue and Interstate 80.

When Carmassi tried to drive away, Carter shot him in the chest through the driver's side window. During trial, a witness described Carmassi as the "weed dealer to the weed dealers" in her neighborhood.

Collins pleaded guilty to first degree murder and attempted robbery before jury selection began. He will receive a sentence of 26 years to life in prison, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney press release.

Taylor pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and will receive a sentence of a maximum of 12 years in prison.

Carter faces a possible sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole. He is scheduled to be sentenced Feb. 8.

Fiscal constraints are forcing the closure of the Lodi branch court.

The San Joaquin Superior Court stated in a public notice Thursday that several years of budget cuts require the closure of the branch court. On March 4, the clerks office and Department L-1 of the Lodi branch court will close.

After March 4, court matters, including criminal cases, traffic court trials and unlawful detainers, will be heard at the main Stockton courthouse, 222 East Weber Ave.

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

QUESTION: Whatever happened to the Mather day care provider who was accused of having an infant in her care die? Last that was reported, she was going to trial.
Submitted by: Jill, Mather

ANSWER: Former day care operator Sheila Caceres was ordered in July to stand trial in the death of an infant boy in her care.

An 18-year-old man who admitted starting numerous fires in the Carmichael area has been sentenced to four years in state prison.

Morgan McGinn (pictured) admitted starting 15 fires during August and September, according to a Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District news release.

He was arrested Oct. 1 by arson investigators and charged with five counts of arson and two counts of felony burglary. He pleaded no contest Dec. 20 to one count of arson, according to Sacramento Superior Court online records.

Three gang members have been sentenced in a 2011 case of attempted murder in Woodland.

Yolo Superior Court Judge Stephen Mock on Tuesday sentenced Rolando Arismendez, 34, Juan Reyes, 21, and German Quezada, 19, to prison terms for attempted murder and gang enhancements, according to a Yolo County District Attorney's office news release.

On Nov. 16, 2011, Arismendez, a validated gang member, provided guns, a car and a driver to fellow gang members Reyes and Quezada. Their plan, officials said, was to kill a resident of Donnelly Circle in Woodland.

Two Shasta County brothers pleaded guilty today in connection with a scheme to produce and sell false immigration documents.

Mario Madrigal-Felix, 36, of Anderson, pleaded guilty in federal court in Sacramento to producing false identification documents, and Sergio Alonso Madrigal-Felix, 32, of Redding pleaded guilty to selling false identification documents, according to a Department of Justice news release.

The brothers produced and sold counterfeit document sets for $150 each that included and alien registration card, or "green card," and a Social Security card with a false number, according to court documents.

A former Elk Grove man has been charged with mail fraud related to embezzlement from his former employer.

A federal grand jury today returned a 20-count indictment against Vincent J. Doyle, 53. Doyle now lives in Syracuse, Ind., according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

According to the indictment, Doyle was the chief financial officer for a civil engineering firm in Sacramento and El Dorado counties. From 2001 until he retired from the firm in 2009, he allegedly used his position to write unauthorized checks form the firm's bank accounts that totaled at least $2.5 million.

Citizens have until Feb. 6 to apply to serve on the 2013-2014 Sacramento County Grand Jury.

Applicants must be at least 18 years old, U.S. citizens and reside in Sacramento County. The grand jury serves from July 10, 2013 to June 30, 2014.

To get an application questionnaire and view a fact sheet, go to www.sacgrandjury.org or call the grand jury coordinator at (916) 874-7559.

An Elk Grove man has been sentenced to prison for identity theft and credit card fraud.

Chief U.S. District Judge Morrison C. England Jr. today sentenced 23-year-old Thang Quoc Nguyen to seven years and eight months in prison for three counts of credit card fraud and two counts of aggravated identify theft, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

Nguyen fraudulently used credit cards issued to other people to make online purchases, according to court documents. He frequently purchased expensive items, listed himself as authorized to make a third-party pickup of merchandise and took delivery of thousands of dollars worth of goods before the fraud was detected and the sales were canceled.

A Citrus Heights man was arraigned today in federal court in Sacramento on mortgage fraud charges.

Daniel Gherasim, 36, was indicted by a federal grand jury on Thursday for bank fraud, false statements on a loan and credit application, money laundering, and structuring in connection with an alleged scheme to defraud a bank in obtaining a home equity loan, according to a Department of Justice news release.

According to the indictment, in November 2008, Gherasim submitted a fraudulent loan application for a home equity line of credit that he took out on a home he owned at the time in Folsom. The application inflated the amount of equity he had in the property.

An Elk Grove man and his brother are in federal custody, charged with student loan fraud.

A federal grand jury in Sacramento on Thursday returned a 12-count-indictment charging Mordechay Altit, 33, of Elk Grove, and his brother Shay Din Altit, 44, of Los Angeles in a scheme to fraudulently obtain student loans, according to Department of Justice news release.

According to the indictment, Mordechay Altit obtained more than $200,000 in student loans from banks through fraudulent representations. He allegedly submitted applications on which he fraudulently represented the names of the students applying for the loans, their Social Security numbers, their incomes, and that they were attending or planned to attend schools such as Harvard Law School, the Yale School of Medicine and California State University, Sacramento.

A federal grand jury in Sacramento has returned nine indictments charging 20 people with drug and arms trafficking by the Nuestra Familia prison gang and its affiliated Norteno gang members.

The indictments, returned on Thursday, are the product of a two-year collaborative investigation that focused on disrupting and dismantling a violent, gang-affiliated drug and weapons trafficking organization, according to Herbert M. Brown, special agent in charge of the Sacramento Division of the Federal Bureau of investigation.

The Nuestra Familia is described by authorities as a violent prison gang based in the California and federal prison systems, whose members exert control over street-level Norteno gang members engaged in drug trafficking and violent crime. During the course of the investigation, agents gathered evidence that many of the defendants were either members of the gangs or an associate of the Nuestra Familia, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

A Sacramento woman had been sentenced to five years in prison for her role in a $1.3 million tax refund fraud scheme.

Tomisha Lee McKinnie, 25, was sentenced today in Sacramento by U.S. District Judge Kimberly J. Mueller. McKinnie also was ordered to pay $962,079 in restitution and will be subject to three years of supervised release following her time in prison, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

McKinnie and co-defendants Nadiyah Muhammad Woods, 33, and Nakia Renee Vaughn, 26, also of Sacramento,conspired to defraud the United States by filing false tax returns using TurboTax, a commercial Internet tax-filing service, according to court documents. To obtain money from the false tax return filings, the women used a TurboTax service that loaded debit cards with the tax return money after the return was filed and approved. The defendants had the debit cards and checks mailed to various addresses under their control in Sacramento County.

A federal fugitive who had claimed that bombs were sent to residences in Rocklin and Auburn has pleaded guilty to making hoax bomb threats.

Stephen J. Isoczky Jr., 60, of Los Angeles pleaded guilty today in federal court in Sacramento to two counts of making bomb threats and a single count of lying to federal agents, according to a Department of Justice news release.

According to court documents, on Sept. 2, Isoczky contacted the national telephone network of the United States Postal Inspection Service claiming to be a concerned citizen alerting authorities to impending letter bombs. Isoczky claimed the bombs were going to be delivered shortly to a residence in Rocklin.

A 24-year-old West Sacramento man has been convicted of domestic violence.

A Yolo County jury on Wednesday found Andrew Jose Ochoa guilty of dissuading a witness, domestic violence, vandalism and possession of tear gas by a felon.

According to evidence presented during the trial, West Sacramento police were dispatched to Ochoa's apartment after his girlfriend called 911. The jury heard the 911 call in which the victim told Ochoa to stay away from her, according to a Yolo County District Attorney's Office news release.

A 61-year-old man with convictions for previous crimes has been sentenced to 40 years to life in state prison for a February robbery and residential burglary.

A Sacramento County jury in August convicted Jonathan Mayhew Watson of the robbery and burglary. The court further found the Watson had five previous convictions for crimes including residential burglary, attempted residential burglary, forcible rape and rape by threat, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release. He was sentenced by Sacramento Superior Court Judge Ernest Sawtelle.

On the evening of Feb. 28, the victim returned home to find that Watson had broken into her apartment and was rifling through her belongings, authorities said. The woman screamed for help and Watson fled from the residence.

A Citrus Heights woman has admitted defrauding her employer of more than $1.7 million.

Kathe Rascher, 53, pleaded guilty today in federal court in Sacramento to one count of mail fraud and one count of tax evasion, according to a Department of Justice news release.

According to the plea agreement, Rascher, a bookkeeper for River Valley Insurance Associates Inc., defrauded the firm of more than $1.7 million and failed to disclose the embezzled income in May 2006, when she filed her federal tax returns for the years 2004 and 2005.

Three Woodland men have been convicted of attempted murder in a November 2011 drive-by shooting.

After two days of deliberation, a Yolo County jury on Tuesday returned guilty verdicts on Rolando Arismendez, 34, Juan Reyes, 21, and German Vizcarra, 19. The charges included conspiracy to commit attempted murder, shooting at an inhabited dwelling, and gang charges and enhancements, according to a Yolo County District Attorney's Office news release.

On Nov. 16, 2011, Arismendez, a validated gang member, provided guns, a car and a driver to Reyes and Vizcarra, also gang members, the release said. They planned to murder a resident of Donnelly Circle in Woodland, officials said.

A Sacramento man has been sentenced to prison for laundering proceeds from interstate marijuana sales.

U.S. District Judge Morrison C. England Jr. today sentenced Keni Renta, 29, to three years and one month in prison for structuring cash transactions from selling marijuana to avoid reporting requirements, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

According to court documents, Renta in 2011 sold marijuana interstate, obtaining the majority of his supply from California growers. Buyers, primarily in the Midwest and Northeast, paid by making deposits into bank branches outside of California for accounts in Renta's name or that he controlled.

Authorities have more than tripled the number of charges against a Sacramento County man whose girlfriend has been missing since 2008 and is presumed dead after prosecutors further reviewed evidence in a separate case, according to officials.

Randy Macedo, 57, has not been charged in the disappearance of his girlfriend, Regina Garcia. Instead, his charges stem from a search of his Arden Arcade home this summer.

That search, prompted by an ex-girlfriend concerned about the welfare of Garcia's young daughter, breathed new life into Garcia's missing person case, and ultimately led Sacramento County sheriff's to dig up Macedo's backyard in search of Garcia's body.

A Granite Bay man pleaded guilty today in federal court in Sacramento to recklessly endangering the safety of an aircraft.

According to court documents, Jerry Edward Kuwata, 63, conspired with others to conceal from customers and the Federal Aviation Administration facts about repairs done by WECO Aerospace Systems Inc.

The firm was founded in 1974 with a repair station in Lincoln and another in Burbank. Among other activities, WECO repaired and overhauled aircraft electronic components and flight instruments, including electromechanical rotables and converters. But those repairs were not being done in accordance with the manufacturer's Component Maintenance Manual and FAA regulations, and false information about the repairs was communicated to customers, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

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

QUESTION: Whatever happened to Hoda Samuel and the co-defendants in a real estate fraud case? Has this case gone to trial? Have any of the defendants been sentenced.?
Submitted by: Steve, Roseville

ANSWER: According to federal court online records, Hoda Samuel of Elk Grove and five other defendants are scheduled for trial Jan. 17 in Sacramento.

A West Sacramento man pleaded guilty today in federal court to mortgage fraud charges arising from home sales in the Sacramento area.

According to court documents, Sean McClendon, 46, participated in the loan origination process for buyers and in each instance the buyers' income and assets were falsified to qualify for the loans.

Co-defendant Anthony Salcedo allegedly compensated McClendon and another co-defendant, Anthony Williams, for finding buyers for four properties owned by or associated with Salcedo, according to a federal Department of Justice news release. Some of the payments by Salcedo allegedly went to the buyers of the property, although the payments were never disclosed to the lenders as part of the purchase and sale agreements, officials said.

The Sacramento County District Attorney's Office has decided not to pursue criminal charges against a prominent North Sacramento resident who allegedly threatened to burn down a former city official's house at a public meeting Monday night.

The decision not to prosecute Bob Slobe, 57, was based on a review of police reports and the fact that the alleged victim, former city manager Bob Thomas, did not want charges filed, according to a statement from the DA's office.

"Thomas stated that he and Slobe are longtime friends and neighbors and this was an isolated incident," according to the written statement.

Sacramento police arrested Slobe on suspicion of making criminal threats Monday night after he twice threatened to burn Thomas' house down. The two men were at a public forum to discuss the proposed move of the Casino Royale card room to the Red Lion Hotel Woodlake off Highway 160.

Thomas was moderating the discussion when Slobe's alleged outburst occurred.

The proposed move of the card room - partly owned by the son of former Sacramento County Sheriff Lou Blanas - is opposed by some North Sacramento residents who fear it will draw more traffic and crime to the area.

Slobe is the scion of a well-known family that once owned the land that is now North Sacramento and is married to federal judge Kim Mueller, a former city councilwoman. He has been a long-time activist for his community, and most recently has been involved in discussions about how to handle the homeless population living on the American River Parkway, 400 acres of which his family gave to the county.

A Yuba County man has been sentenced to prison by a federal court judge in Iowa after pleading guilty to weapons charges and to possessing medical marijuana with the intent to distribute it.

Kelvin Maximillion Stanford of Olivehurst was sentenced Oct. 11 in Cedar Rapids by U.S. District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade to two years in federal prison. He was stopped on Interstate 80 driving from California with nearly 3 pounds of medical marijuana, a firearm and a stun baton, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

Stanford pleaded guilty in July to possessing with the intent to distribute less than 50 kilograms of marijuana and being an unlawful drug user in possession of a firearm.

A South Lake Tahoe investment broker has been sentenced to three years and eight months in prison for stealing from clients' accounts.

Lori Zoval, 47, also will be subject to three years of supervised release following her prison term for embezzling client money while employed as a licensed investment broker with a brokerage firm in Folsom. She was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Garland E. Burrell Jr., and a hearing was scheduled for Nov. 2 to determine the restitution amount, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

According to court documents, Zoval pleaded guilty to using her position of trust to embezzle at least $24,939 from the investment and retirement accounts of her clients between October 2005 and April 2006. At sentencing, however, the court found that she had stolen more than $430,000 from these clients, a married couple close to retirement.

A Sacramento Superior Court judge slammed convicted rapist Frank Rackley Sr. with a life-long sentence this morning as his two victims and their supporters looked on.

In May, a jury convicted Rackley, a career criminal with a history that dates back to his days as a teenager, of two counts of forcible rape and two other counts of sexual assault. For those crimes, plus special allegations found to be true and because of prior strikes, Judge Greta Curtis Fall handed down a sentence of 141 years to life.

Rackley's victims, 16 and 30 at the time of the attacks, were working as prostitutes when he picked them up. The victims attended today's sentencing but did not speak. They left the courtroom and were quietly congratulated, hugged and kissed by supporters in the courthouse elevator.

Today's proceedings in the Davis "sweethearts" trial were a reminder of just how long this case has been winding its way through Sacramento's criminal justice system.

First, jurors heard from Dr. Pierce Rooney - or at least a videotaped version of him. The forensic pathologist who performed the autopsy on John Riggins - killed with his girlfriend Sabrina Gonsalves just before Christmas in 1980 - has died since he testified in the 2007 preliminary hearing to decide whether Richard Hirschfield would stand trial for the murders.

A judge ruled that he should stand trial, and the video of that 2007 testimony was played Friday for jurors who are now tasked with deciding whether Hirschfield is responsible for the brutal slayings more than three decades ago.

Two men were sentenced in federal court in Sacramento today for charges related to an interstate marijuana shipping business.

U.S. District Judge Morrison C. England Jr. sentenced Jauwon Pierre Wilder, 28, to two years in prison, and Charles Wilson, 35, to 10 months in prison, according to a federal Department of Justice news release. Both men are from Sacramento.

According to court documents, in 2011 co-defendant Keni Renta ran a business that sold marijuana interstate. He obtained a majority of his supply from other California growers. Wilson grew marijuana for the business, and Wilder helped launder the proceeds from the operation.

A federal grand jury today returned a superseding indictment charging a Granite Bay man with conspiracy to commit fraud involving aircraft parts.

According to court documents, William Hugh Weygandt, 63, is the former owner and president of WECO Aeropsace Systems Inc., a Federal Aviation Administration-certified aircraft repair station based in Lincoln, which was purchased n 2007 by Gulfstream Aerospace Corp.

Former WECO executives -- Jerry Edward Kuwata, 60 of Granite Bay; Michael Dennis Maupin, 58, of Arbuckle; Scott Hamilton Durham, 39, of Roseville; Christopher Warren MacQueen, 53, of Lincoln; Douglas Arthur Johnson 52, of Granite Bay; and Anthony Vincent Zito, 47 of Saugus -- were previously indicted by the grand jury in September 2011 for conspiracy and fraud involving airplane parts, and mail fraud. Kuwata, Durham, MacQueen and Johnson are also charged in the superseding indictment. Maupin and Zito have pleaded guilty to federal offenses and await sentencing, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

A 25-year-old man is likely to spend the rest of his life in prison after a Sacramento Superior Court judge sentenced him for fatally shooting an innocent bystander and injuring four other people at a 2011 party.

On Friday, Judge Greta Fall sentenced Michael Walton to 91 years to life after a jury convicted him of murder, attempted murder, three counts of assault with a semiautomatic firearm, being a felon in possession of a firearm and receiving stolen property, according to the Sacramento County District Attorney's office.

After the jury trial, Fall also found a prior strike allegation to be true, the DA's office said.

A Sacramento Superior Court judge this morning sentenced a 22-year-old woman to 25-years-to-life for stabbing her on-and-off-again lover to death - 91 times - in a fit of jealousy and rage.

In August, a jury convicted Lan Anh Le of first-degree murder in the March 2010 stabbing of Monica Anderson, 26. Le was 20 at the time.

Judge Ernest W. Sawtelle handed down the maximum sentence after addressing Anderson's tearful family in the audience, telling them he couldn't help but think of his own daughter and what it would be like to lose a child.

"My deepest sympathy is extended to you," Sawtelle said, "and I feel a great sense of sorrow on your behalf."

Ricardo Lynn Hall was convicted today in the 2010 shooting death of Matthew Maurizzio in North Sacramento.

A Sacramento County jury found Hall, 20, guilty of first-degree murder and also found true the special circumstance that the murder occurred during an attempted robbery.

On Jan. 23, 2010, Sacramento police responded to a shooting in the area of Dixieanne Avenue and Cambridge Street. Officers found Maurizzio dead in the front yard of a nearby residence.

Hall is to be sentenced Nov. 9 by Sacramento Superior Court Judge Roland Candee.

An Orangevale man was sentenced today in federal court in Sacramento to 21 months in prison for conspiring to distribute hydrocodone.

According to court documents, Brandon Savaloja, 27, conspired with Raymond Reyes, 20, of Lincoln and others to distribute the drug in Placer, Sonoma, San Joaquin and Yuba counties. Hydrocodone is an opiate pain reliever found in such common medications as Vicodin, Norco and Lortab.

Savaloja was sentenced by U.S. District Judge John A. Mendez. Reyes was sentenced March 28 by Judge Mendez to four years and nine months in prison for conspiring to distribute hydrocodone and aggravated theft.

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

QUESTION: In 1992, a young woman I was somewhat associated with was arrested for attempting to hire someone to kill her romantic rival. The young man they were both interested in was a member of a popular Sacramento rock band. Someone had tipped off the police about her intentions, and a law enforcement person posing as a hit man met with her. Whatever became of this case?

Submitted by: Anonymous, Sacramento

ANSWER: Alaina Michelle Rowe pleaded guilty in December 1992 to solicitation for murder after being accused of attempting to hire a hit man to kill her teenage rival.

Two Roseville residents were arrested today in connection with a loan modification and foreclosure rescue scheme.

Martin Wayne Flanders, 48, and Ligia Sandoval Spafford, 46, were arrested on a federal complaint charging them with conspiracy to commit bankruptcy fraud for filing sham bankruptcy petitions as part of the scheme, according to a federal Department of Justice news release. The complaint was filed in Sacramento on Friday and unsealed today after the couple's arrest.

According to court documents, Flanders charged clients advance fees in exchange for a number of financial services, including loan modifications, mortgage loan audits, credit repair, debt relief, bankruptcy filings and a program to sell homes to "investors" with a rent-to-own option.

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

QUESTION: What was the sentence for Betty Gracia and Anthony Portillo for money laundering?
Submitted by: Forty Niner Wayne, Sacramento

ANSWER: Anthony Portillo of El Dorado Hills and his mother, Betty Gracia, pleaded guilty in federal court in Sacramento in April 2011 to money laundering and concealing a felony respectively.

A man convicted of a 1992 murder in Sacramento has been sentenced to 36 years to life in prison.

A Sacramento County jury in August convicted Michael Peterson, 47, of first-degree murder in the stabbing death of John Arana. He was sentenced today by Sacramento Superior Court Judge Maryanne Gilliard, according to a news release from the Sacramento County District Attorney's Office.

Arana, 40, died of stab wounds Nov. 5, 1992, at his home in the 5400 block of 10th Avenue. A few days after his death, his stolen truck was found about a mile from his home.

A Sacramento man has been convicted of sexual conduct with a minor who he pursued via social media.

A Yolo County jury today convicted Ronald Vikash Chand, 32, of five counts of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor.

Chand became involved with the victim when she was 15 years old, according to a Yolo County District Attorney's Office news release.

Authorities said he lied to her about his age and, knowing that she was 15 years old, he pursued her on Facebook and by text messages. On multiple occasions, he picked her up at her high school and engaged in sexual acts with her in his car and at a West Sacramento motel.

Chand is to be sentenced Oct. 22 by Yolo Superior Court Judge Timothy Fall.

A 44-year-old man has men sentenced to six years and four months in prison for engaging in sexual conduct with a minor in a restroom at the Carmichael Library.

Mark L'Ilith was convicted by a Sacramento County jury in August of six counts of child molestation. He was sentenced today by Sacramento Superior Court Judge Helena Gweon.

L'Ilith frequently visited the Carmichael Library at 5605 Marconi Ave. On two different dates in October 2011, he engaged in sexual conduct with a 14-year-old boy in a library restroom stall during business hours, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release. The victim did not know L'Ilith. Officials said he met L'Ilith by chance in the restroom.

Sacramento County sheriff's deputies arrested L'Ilith in December. They obtained a search warrant for his email account, where they discovered numerous emails between L'Ilith and strangers in which he suggested meeting at the library to engage in sex acts in the restroom.

A Sacramento man has been sentenced in federal court in Sacramento to 20 years in prison for cocaine trafficking and money laundering.

Daryl M. Summerfield, 46, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Kimberly J. Mueller.

Between 2003 and March 2006, Summerfield had cocaine shipped in vans from California to Alaska, according to court documents. The vans were driven to Seattle, then shipped from Seattle to Alaska. When the cocaine arrived in Alaska, Summerfield flew to the state and oversaw its distribution through a network of drug distributors in Alaska, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

A Folsom man was sentenced today in federal court in Sacramento to five years in prison for receiving child pornography.

Matthew Mark Battersby, 44, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Kimberly J. Mueller. Upon release from prison, he will be subject to 10 years of supervised probation, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

According to court documents, in September 2011, law enforcement officers identified a computer at Battersby's address offering files of child pornography on an Internet file-sharing service. Law enforcement agents established a direct connection with Battersby's computer and downloaded a video of child pornography. On Sept. 22, 2011, agents searched Battersby's residence and found approximately 15 image files and 179 video files of child pornography on his computer, authorities said.

The case resulted from an investigation by the Sacramento Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, a federally and state-funded task force managed by the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department with agents from federal, state and local agencies. The Sacramento task force investigates online child exploitation crimes, including child pornography, enticement and sex trafficking.

A 31-year-old man has been sentenced to 115 years to life in prison for a string of crimes he committed in Citrus Heights and North Highlands two years ago.

Sacramento Superior Court Judge Ben Davidian sentenced James Earl Lawhead under the "three strikes" law, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release.

On July 25, 2010, Lawhead disguised himself and robbed the manager of the Blockbuster Video store, 7291 Greenback Lane, at gunpoint as the woman walked to the bank to make a store deposit, authorities said. Following a Citrus Heights Police Department investigation, a warrant was issued for Lawhead's arrest.

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

QUESTION: What is the current status of the Richard S. Johnson trial?
Submitted by: VXSGUY, Antelope

ANSWER: A Sacramento County jury in June convicted Richard S. Johnson of sexually assaulting a child younger than 14 and also found an allegation of kidnapping to be true.

A Chico mortgage broker was sentenced today in federal court in Sacramento to three years and 10 months in prison for her role in a mortgage fraud scheme.

Kesha Danine Fortune Haynie, 41, was convicted by a jury in March of two counts of mail fraud in connection with the scheme. She was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Edward J. Garcia.

According to testimony presented at trial, Haynie operated Empire Mortgage in Chico. From April through December 2007, she originated fraudulent loan applications in connection with a cash-back-to-buyer mortgage fraud scheme, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

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

QUESTION: What became of the two people arrested in Lincoln for possession of multiple firearms and hand grenades. One of them was a woman, the other a man. Have they gone to court yet? What was the outcome?
Submitted by: Jim, Boston

ANSWER: Eric William Smith and Jennifer Mulhern, both of Lincoln, were arrested in January 2011 following a drug and gang investigation by the Roseville Police Department's Crime Suppression Unit.

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

QUESTION: How much prison time did Santino Deanda get in prison at his June 1, 2012, sentencing for multiple counts of child porn crimes?
Submitted by: linkin34, Sacramento

ANSWER: Santino Deanda, 34, was sentenced June 1 to 25 years to life in prison, according to Sacramento Superior Court online records.

A Sacramento County jury in April convicted Deanda of multiple child porn and sexual assault charges.

Prosecutors said Deanda abused the 10-year-old victim over several months.

Deanda is in Salinas Valley State Prison in Soledad.

Have a Sacto 911 question? Submit it here.

A 29-year-old Davis man has been sentenced to eight years in state prison for causing great bodily injury while driving under the influence of alcohol.

Rogelio Cardenas Sanchez pleaded no contest to the charge in June and was sentenced last week by Yolo Superior Court Judge Paul Richardson.

On May 19, a Winters man was driving with his teenage daughter after visiting his wife in the hospital. They were en route to a graduation party for one of the daughter's friends when Sanchez ran a stop sign and crashed into the passenger side the victim's car where the daughter was seated.

The young woman suffered major trauma. She was airlifted from the crash scene and later went into a coma, according to a Yolo County District Attorney's Office news release. Officials said she remains in a coma and is on a feeding tube.

A Redding man has entered a guilty plea in an investment fraud case.

Robert E. Rosenau today pleaded guilty in federal court in Sacramento to one count of mail fraud.

According to court documents, Rosenau was employed by and had management control of Rosenau Investments Inc., a hard money lender specializing in short-term loans for real estate rehabilitation. Rosenau Investments obtained the money for loans from individual investors whose loans were associated with specific properties.The firm told its investors that it did not loan money on properties with a loan to value ratio of more than 70 percent and that it maintained a lien on the properties in a primary position, according to a federal Department of Justice news release.

Two men were arraigned today in Placer County Superior Court, accused of burglarizing high-end electronics retailers in five Bay Area counties, then selling the merchandise on an online auction website.

Justin Mahlet, 37, of Sacramento and Jason Tate, 41, of Rocklin were arraigned on 17 felony counts of burglary that resulted in losses of $400,000 in stolen goods and property damage, according to a news release from the California Attorney General's Office. Both men pleaded not guilty.

Mahlet and Tate turned themselves in in July and were released on bail set at $105,000 and $50,00 respectively.

By Denny Walsh
dwalsh@sacbee.com

Over the strong objections of federal prosecutors, Bart Wayne Volen, charged as the key culprit in an $18 million theft from the United Auburn Indian Community, today was ordered released on $3.5 million bail.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Dale A. Drozd directed that the bail be secured with a home in Maui and an $800,000 bond signed by Volen's son.

The judge also ordered approximately $573,000 in Volen bank accounts in Maui, San Diego and Thailand transferred to the client trust account of his attorney, Matthew Jacobs. None of that money may be withdrawn without the approval of a court officer, Drozd directed.

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

QUESTION: What is the status of the prosecution of Daniel Chartraw, accused of multiple financial schemes that duped people of millions of dollars? He was arrested and charged in May.
Submitted by: Sam Wiggins, San Diego

ANSWER: Former El Dorado Hills resident Daniel Chartraw was indicted by a federal grand jury in Sacramento on 18 counts of wire fraud in connection with uranium mines, oil commodities, precious metals in concentrate, dairy financing, gold refining and mining, and movie production.

By Denny Walsh

dwalsh@sacbee.com

Resumption of the federal court hearing on bail for Bart Wayne Volen, charged with masterminding an $18 million theft from the United Auburn Indian Community, is now scheduled for Friday.

Volen, a developer and contractor who did work for the tribe, along with two of its former employees, are accused of carrying out a bribery and kickback scheme involving construction of the tribe's headquarters and other facilities in Auburn.

The tribe operates the Thunder Valley Casino Resort in Lincoln.

Prosecutors oppose bail for Volen based on his substantial resources, the ease with which he travels around the world and alleged lack of candor when he was interviewed by a court officer about his finances.

Volen, 53, formerly lived in the Sacramento area, but now divides his time between a home in the San Diego area and one in Hawaii.

The U.S. Justice Department announced today that it and the National Federation of the Blind have reached a settlement with the Sacramento Public Library Authority to supply e-book readers for the blind.

The settlement resolves allegations that the library violated the Americans with Disabilities Act by using "inaccessible" Barnes & Noble Nook electronic readers in the library lending program.

The settlement agreement calls for the library not to acquire any more e-readers that exclude the blind who need features such as text-to-speech functions or the ability to access menus through audio or touch options.

"Emerging technologies like e-readers are changing the way we interact with the world around us and we need to ensure that people with disabilities are not excluded from the programs where these devices are used," stated Assistant Attorney General Thomas E. Perez in a press release.

The library has also agreed to acquire at least 18 e-readers that persons with disabilities can use.

By Denny Walsh
dwalsh@sacbee

Former Sacramento County Sheriff's Deputy Thomas Lu pleaded guilty this morning in federal court to dealing in firearms without a license, and he has agreed to cooperate with the government in the prosecution of others.

Lu, 42, is charged in a grand jury indictment along with another former sheriff's deputy, a licensed firearms dealer and a man who unlawfully acquired a firearm.

The cases against the other three defendants are pending, and they are due back in court Oct. 10 for a status conference.

U.S. District Judge Lawrence K. Karlton set Nov. 20 for Lu's return to court, but it is unlikely he will be sentenced at that time because he will still be acting as an informant and the quality of his assistance will be a major factor in how much time he spends behind bars, if any.

The crime to which he pleaded guilty carries a maximum five-year prison term.

A 62-year-old Sacramento man has been sentenced to 200 years to life in prison for rape and sexual assault of two women.

Edward Charles Gellock was convicted last month by a Sacramento County jury and sentenced today by Superior Court Judge David De Alba.

On April 2, 2011, Gellock lured a homeless woman into his apartment by promising her a warm and dry place to sleep. Once she was inside, he beat, choked and sexually assaulted her, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release. Two weeks later, on April 23, he beat, choked and raped his female In-Home Supportive Services worker.

When Sacramento police responded to Gellock's residence at the Ping Yuen Senior Apartments at 420 I St., he kept officers at bay by holding a cigarette lighter to an oxygen tank and threatening to blow up the apartment if they came any closer. The apartment complex was evacuated, and Gellock was subsequently taken into custody.

A West Sacramento man has been sentenced to 30 years to life in prison for child molestation.

Dmitry Dudkin, 27, pleaded no contest on July 24 to two counts of child molestation in the case. He was sentenced today by Yolo Superior Court Judge Stephen Mock.

Dudkin molested an 8-year-old girl from 2009 to 2011, according to a Yolo County District Attorney's Office news release. The crimes were discovered when the girl went to school with a hickey on her neck, authorities said.

The girl told police that Dudkin showed her pornography and asked her to perform various sexual acts. She also told authorities that Dudkin took pictures of her with his cell phone.

Members of the Yolo County High-Tech Crimes Task Force analyzed Dudkin's computers and cell phones and found provocative photos of the victim.

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

QUESTION: What happened to the engineer from Rancho Seco who was accused of sending threatening letters to President Bush? It seems like there wasn't actually anthrax but an inert powder used. Was the guy convicted and sentenced to prison or a medical facility?
Submitted by: Emmi, Sacramento

ANSWER: Michael Lee Braun, who worked as a nuclear engineer at the Sacramento Municipal Utility District's now-decommissioned Rancho Seco nuclear generating