RIVERSIDE (CNS) – A segment of Interstate 15 in Lake Elsinore will bear the name of a fallen Riverside County sheriff’s deputy, following passage of a Senate resolution intended to honor him. Sen. Kelly Seyarto, R-Murrieta, brought forward Senate Resolution 25 in the just-ended legislative session to memorialize 30-year-old Deputy Darnell Calhoun, who was gunned down during an ambush in January in Lakeland Village. The resolution unanimously passed the Senate in August and was formally chaptered by the California Office of the Secretary of State earlier this month. “I was fortunate enough to k ..read more

MURRIETA (CNS) – A man who sold a deadly dose of fentanyl to a 26-year- old Lake Elsinore resident was bound for state prison Monday to serve an 11- year sentence. Everardo Martinez Rodriguez, 31, of Lake Elsinore pleaded guilty in May to voluntary manslaughter and sentence-enhancing allegations of targeting a vulnerable victim and taking advantage of a position of trust. In exchange for his admissions, the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office dropped a second-degree murder charge against Rodriguez. During a hearing Friday at the Southwest Justice Center in Murrieta, Superior Court Judg ..read more

MURRIETA (CNS) – A 35-year-old man accused of sexually assaulting a Lake Elsinore girl multiple times over a nearly six-year-long span was charged Wednesday with a dozen felony offenses. Martin Ancamil of Lake Elsinore was arrested Monday following a weeks- long Riverside County Sheriff’s Department investigation. Ancamil is charged with six counts of forcible lewd acts on a minor, three counts of forced sexual penetration and one count each of oral copulation of a minor, aggravated sexual assault of a child and assault with intent to commit mayhem, as well as sentence-enhancing allegations of ..read more

LAKE ELSINORE (CNS) – Three men were arrested in connection with a robbery in Lake Elsinore, authorities said Thursday. Deputies responded to the 18000 block of Collier Avenue to a report of a robbery, according to Sgt. Carlos Garcia Villa of the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department. Villa said three suspects entered the business wearing face masks and then fled northbound on Interstate 15 after allegedly taking numerous mobile devices. According to Villa, sheriff’s deputies from the Lake Elsinore and Lake Mathews stations located the vehicle with the three suspects at about 7:05 p.m. Wednesd ..read more

RIVERSIDE (CNS) – Fourth of July parades and fireworks spectaculars are slated throughout Riverside County Tuesday in celebration of America’s 247th birthday. Corona’s traditional “Main Street U.S.A Parade” will begin about 9 a.m. at Ontario and Main streets, featuring law enforcement units, fire engines, marching bands, military hardware and show animals. The procession will travel about a mile, concluding at Olive and Main streets around noon. A fireworks show is set for 9 p.m. in Santana Regional Park. Moreno Valley’s “Fourth of July Parade” will get underway at 9:30 a.m. at Alessandro Boul ..read more

RIVERSIDE (CNS) – Prosecutors intend to seek the death penalty for a 43-year-old man accused of gunning down a Riverside County sheriff’s deputy, who went to the defendant’s Lakeland Village home to investigate a domestic disturbance, it was announced Monday. Jesse Ceazar Navarro allegedly killed 30-year-old Deputy Darnell Calhoun on the afternoon of Friday, Jan. 13, 2023. “Deputy Calhoun showed incredible courage during a terrifying situation that unfolded in a matter of seconds,” District Attorney Mike Hestrin said Monday. “His dedication to the community culminated in a ruthless attack by N ..read more

RIVERSIDE (CNS) – Fourth of July celebrations will get underway this weekend in Riverside County, ahead of America’s 247th birthday. On Saturday, the city of Murrieta will be combining pre-Independence Day festivities with a 32nd “Birthday Bash” for the municipality, which incorporated in 1991. There will be an outdoor concert, food vendors, a kids play zone and pyrotechnics after nightfall in California Oaks Sports Park. The city of Menifee’s traditional “Independence Day Celebration” also will be held Saturday in Wheatfield Park, beginning at 4 p.m., featuring a parade along La Piedra Road ..read more

LAKE ELSINORE (CNS) – A motorist who allegedly brandished a pistol at a Riverside County sheriff’s deputy was shot in Lake Elsinore, authorities said Tuesday. The non-fatal shooting occurred at about 11:30 p.m. Monday in a residential area near the intersection of Baker Street and Bromley Avenue, according to sheriff’s spokeswoman Sgt. Wenndy Brito Gonzalez. She said a patrol deputy stopped to check unspecified activity in a vehicle, and as he approached the car, the occupant “produced a handgun.” The deputy reacted by opening fire, hitting the suspect at least once, according to Gonzalez. The ..read more

RIVERSIDE (CNS) – The Riverside County Sheriff’s Department sought the public’s help Monday to find an inmate who escaped from an “alternative custody placement” facility in Perris. Robert Staricka, 48, is white, 6 feet tall, weighs 225 pounds, and has blond hair and brown eyes. Staricka has a number of tattoos, including “STARICKA” on the upper part of his back, a rose with “Mom” underneath it on the left side of his neck, and a swastika near his left armpit. Staricka is known to frequent Riverside, Lake Elsinore, and Murrieta, the sheriff’s department reported. Anyone seeing him was urged to ..read more

RIVERSIDE (CNS) – Tribute and funeral services were announced Thursday for a Riverside County sheriff’s deputy killed in a crash at a San Jacinto intersection. Deputy Brett Michael Harris, 27, of Temecula was gravely injured in the predawn hours of May 12 at Esplanade Avenue and State Street. He died less than two days later from what Sheriff Chad Bianco described as a “catastrophic brain injury.” Services to honor the fallen lawman — the third line-of-duty death among sheriff’s personnel in the last five months — are scheduled for Wednesday. According to sheriff’s officials, a procession of l ..read more