Dennis Rodman has been named a “person of interest” in a hit-and-run investigation in Santa Ana, after a late night collision Wednesday morning, according to TMZ Sports.
An eyewitness told California Highway Patrol (CHP) that there was another car involved and Rodman happened to be in it, according to the Daily Mail. However Rodman was not at the scene when law enforcement arrived.
Santa Ana City Councilwoman Michele Martinez is hosting a kickoff to her campaign for the First Supervisorial District on July 28, 2016, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at Chapter One: The Modern Local, located at 227 N. Broadway, in Downtown Santa Ana.
Campaign contribution amounts range from $125 to 1,900. RSVP to michelemartinezfundraiser@gmail.com. Continue reading→
Santa Ana Police Department
SANTA ANA POLICE STEPING UP DUI ENFORCEMENT
The Santa Ana Police Department will be conducting a DUI / Drivers License checkpoint on Friday, July 22nd, 2016. It will begin at 9:30 pm and is scheduled to conclude at 2:30 am. It will be conducted in the area of 500 W. Warner Avenue, in the City of Santa Ana.
The primary purpose of a DUI Checkpoint is to deter impaired driving, not to increase arrests. All too often, members of our community are senselessly injured or killed on local roadways by impaired drivers. This DUI / Drivers License checkpoint is an effort to reduce those tragedies, as well as ensuring drivers have a valid driver’s license. The DMV reports that unlicensed drivers are 4.9 times more likely to cause a fatal crash than a licensed driver. Continue reading→
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 21, 2016
Santa Ana Unified School District
Deidra Powell, Chief Communications Officer, (714) 558-5555 (office), (714) 673-4995 (mobile)
SANTA ANA UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT UNVEILS FREE, BILINGUAL EARLY LITERACY PROGRAM FOR ALL CITY RESIDENTS
Santa Ana Unified School District is set to debut Paso a Paso: Together We Read. This event will unveil the District’s complimentary and cutting-edge bilingual literacy program that will support all early learners, from birth through 2nd grade. Through this initiative, all families in Santa Ana—whether they are enrolled in district schools or not—will have free access to the award-winning Footsteps2Brilliance Early Literacy App. Continue reading→
Santa Ana City Council Candidate Jose Solorio, who has moved into Ward 3, is hosting a Kick-Off Coffee Fundraiser on Friday, July 22, 2016, from 8 a.m. to 9:30 a.m., at the Santa Ana Police Officers Association Hall, located at 1607 N. Sycamore St., in Santa Ana.
The Ward 3 seat opened up because Councilwoman Angie Amezcua is not running for re-election. That is no surprise as she didn’t campaign four years ago and yet somehow won the seat. She never seemed very enthused to be on the City Council. Continue reading→
Jose Luis Mejia Salas, 27, a molestation suspect who eluded authorities for several years was caught following a police chase made his first appearance in court Tuesday on the sexual assault charge dating back to 2007, according to the O.C. Register.
Salas fled from police on July 10, when officers tried to pull him over for a routine traffic stop, according to the SAPD. Eventually Salas stopped his car and tried to escape on foot, but he was eventually caught while trying to hide in a relative’s home. Continue reading→
BANK ROBBERY ARREST
By: The Fountain Valley Police Department
On Monday, July 18, 2016 at approximately 3:47 PM, the Fountain Valley Police Department responded to 16192 Harbor Boulevard, Bank of America, regarding a bank robbery that had just occurred.
The suspect entered the bank and approached a teller. The suspect grabbed a hold of the teller’s hand and demanded money. The teller complied and handed the suspect cash at which time he exited the bank. As the suspect fled on foot he said he had a bomb in his backpack, which was left inside the bank. The bank was evacuated and the Orange County Sheriff’s Bomb Squad was requested to render the backpack safe. No explosives were located in the backpack. Continue reading→
Santa Ana Police Department
Advisory: SAPD Traffic Investigators Make an Arrest in Fatal Hit and Run Collision
Arrested: Israel Gutierres Zamora (45) Santa Ana
Booking Charges: Gross Vehicular Manslaughter While Intoxicated, Felony Hit and Run
Victim: Mitchell Paul Viturino (61), Fullerton
On Monday, February 8th, 2016 at 2:01am, officers responded to a report of a two-vehicle collision at the intersection of Bristol Street and 1st Street in Santa Ana. The collision involved a silver 2006 Mercedes Benz E350 sedan and a red 1999 Ford Mustang coupe. It was also reported that occupants of the Mercedes were seen fleeing the scene of the collision. Continue reading→
ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY PRESS RELEASE
Case # 13CF1954
Date: July 20, 2016
FULLERTON, Calif. – A man is scheduled to face trial tomorrow for the stabbing-murder of his acquaintance after chasing and stalking him and fleeing to Mexico. Mario Alberto Rodriguez, 26, Santa Ana, is charged with one felony count of murder with a sentencing enhancement for the personal use of a knife. If convicted, Rodriguez faces a maximum sentence of life in state prison. Opening statements are scheduled to begin tomorrow, July 21, 2016, at 9:30 a.m. in Department N-11, North Justice Center, Fullerton.
On March 9, 2013, Rodriguez is accused of seeing 26-year-old acquaintance Paul Anthony Garcia, from Irvine, in front of the defendant’s family’s home in Santa Ana, and chasing him on foot. Rodriguez and two associates followed Garcia for a few blocks until he entered the El Chile Picante Restaurant on South Main Street. Continue reading→
Leonardo Morales, a 23-year-old man, was sentenced Tuesday to seven years in prison for a drunken driving crash in which the SUV he was driving erupted into flames just before two California Highway Patrol officers rescued him, a woman and their two young children, according to the O.C. Register.
Morales had previously pleaded guilty on June 10 to driving under the influence of alcohol causing injury, driving with a blood-alcohol level exceeding the legal limit of .08 percent or more causing injury as well and two counts of child abuse and endangerment – all felony charges. Continue reading→
In yet another screw-up by SAPD Police Chief Carlos Rojas, he allowed himself to be included in a picture that featured him in his uniform on a political mailer promoting O.C. Supervisor Andrew Do (a Republican from Garden Grove). Never mind the fact that Do is running against one of Rojas’ bosses, Santa Ana City Councilwoman Michele Martinez, the fact is that it is a a violation of Government Code and Departmental Policies for our Police Chief to appear, in uniform, in a campaign mailer.
The matter was investigated at City Hall and while it was determined that Rojas was “unaware the picture was taken” and Rojas claimed that he did not give permission for the photo to be used by Do’s campaign.
How can our Police Chief be so clueless that he would not observe someone taking his picture in a crowded room during an important meeting? Continue reading→
Department of Justice
U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Connecticut
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Monday, July 18, 2016
Ringleader of Mortgage Loan Modification Scheme Sentenced to More Than 9 Years in Federal Prison
ARIA MALEKI, 33, of Santa Ana, Calif., was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to 112 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for heading a mortgage loan modification scheme that defrauded more than 1,000 struggling homeowners across the United States.
“This defendant presided over a scheme that preyed on struggling homeowners in Connecticut and across the United States, falsely offering mortgage relief in exchange for thousands of dollars that the victims clearly could not afford to spend,” said Deirdre M. Daly, U.S. Attorney for the District of Connecticut. “The investigation revealed that the participants in this scheme specifically targeted homeowners who were behind on their mortgage payments, whose homes were ‘under water,’ or who had recently experienced a financial hardship, such as a lost job. This is an appropriate sentence for a defendant who profited handsomely from such heartless, criminal conduct. I thank our federal and state law enforcement partners in New England, New Jersey, California and Oklahoma for investigating this matter, shutting down this scam and bringing those responsible to justice.” Continue reading→
Contact: Deidra Powell, Chief Communications Officer (714) 558-‐5555 (office) (714) 673-‐4995 (mobile)
Superintendent Unveils Citywide Early Learning and Literacy Initiative Using Smartphones and Mobile Devices
Santa Ana, California – July 22, 2016 – Santa Ana Unified School District (SAUSD) Superintendent Dr. Rick Miller is hosting Paso a Paso – Together We Read, an Early Learning Literacy Innovation Summit from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. PST at Davis Elementary School, located at 1405 French Street, Santa Ana, CA 92701.
With an invitation open to the entire Santa Ana community, this event will unveil Superintendent Miller’s citywide English and Spanish early reading initiative using smartphones, tablets, and computers. Together, with members of the Santa Ana Unified School District Board of Education, Dr. Miller will challenge the Santa Ana community to read 1 million words by November 30, 2016. Continue reading→
There was a fire reported this morning at an apartment building located at the 600 block of East Walnut, in Santa Ana, according to the O.C. Fire Authority.
Twenty seven OCFA firefighters were able to knock down the fire by 11:19 a.m.
The fire reportedly started in a second-floor unit of the apartment building and it spread to the building’s attic, according to the OCFA. Continue reading→
Riverside County Sheriff’s Department
Press Release: Possession of a Controlled Substance for Sales Arrest Incident
File Number(s): SW16198009
On January 16, 2016, at 5:24 AM, deputies were dispatched to the 45000 block of Pechanga Parkway reference a report of possible drug activity occurring out of a vehicle parked inside a parking structure.
Upon arriving on scene, deputies contacted the occupants of the vehicle identified as Rudy Torres and Karina Melgoza, both residents of the city of Santa Ana. Continue reading→
