Santa Ana's top news & views blog

Santa Ana's top news & views blog

Author Archives: Art Pedroza

The I-405 is set to close overnight this Saturday in Huntington Beach and Westminster

Posted on by Posted in OCTA, Orange County Leave a comment

I-405 set to Close Overnight Saturday in Huntington Beach, Westminster

Full freeway closure planned in both directions from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. on Aug. 25 between Beach Boulevard and Bolsa Avenue/Goldenwest Street

ORANGE – Interstate 405 through Huntington Beach and Westminster is scheduled to fully close from approximately 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 25 as part of the I-405 Improvement Project.

The full freeway closure is necessary to finish safely demolishing the McFadden Avenue bridge over the northbound I-405 lanes. Half the bridge, over the southbound lanes, was demolished during an overnight full freeway closure on Aug. 18. Continue reading→

The SAPD will be conducting a DUI and driver’s license checkpoint this Saturday night

Posted on by Posted in Alcohol, Crime, Santa Ana, SAPD Leave a comment

Santa Ana Police Department

Advisory: SAPD will be conducting a DUI/Driver’s License checkpoint on Saturday, August 25th in the area of 2100 S. Raitt.

SANTA ANA POLICE STEP UP DUI ENFORCEMENT

The Santa Ana Police Department will be conducting a DUI / Driver’s License checkpoint on Saturday August 25th, 2018. It will begin at 9:00PM and is scheduled to conclude at 2:30AM. It will be conducted in the area of 2100 S Raitt Street, in the City of Santa Ana. Continue reading→

A man was shot and killed this afternoon just south of Heritage Park

Posted on by Posted in Crime, Santa Ana, SAPD 1 Comment

Santa Ana Police Department

Advisory: SAPD Detectives Investigating Homicide – 800 Block South Flintridge Drive

Victim: Deceased- Male Hispanic (35) Victim name release pending family notification

On Wednesday, August 22, 2018, at 1:18 PM, Santa Ana Police officers responded to reports of a shooting with a subject down at 800 Block South Flintridge Drive. Responding officers discovered a Hispanic adult male down on the sidewalk suffering apparent gunshot wounds to his upper torso.

Police officers began lifesaving measures and requested paramedics. Orange County Fire Authority paramedics responded to the scene, treated, and transported the shooting victim to a local trauma center. Attending physicians declared the victim deceased on at 1:57 PM. Continue reading→

Several Buddhist temples in Santa Ana were vandalized this past weekend

Posted on by Posted in Andrew Do, Churches and Religion, Crime, OCDA, Orange County, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Vandalism Targeted at Buddhist Temples in Santa Ana Declared a Hate Crime by OC District Attorney

By: O.C. Supervisor Andrew Do

This past weekend a number of Buddhist temples in Santa Ana were vandalized, causing extensive damage to religious statues and other temple property. Law enforcement officials have footage of a suspect in the act of vandalizing and are asking for help from the community in locating the individual.

The targeting of Buddhist temples is cause of great concern for the Vietnamese-American Community in Orange County. Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas will be announcing that he will consider these criminal conducts as possible hate crime. If convicted, this will lead to greater punishments for the offender(s). Continue reading→

The SAPD is trying to locate the family of a woman who was hit by a vehicle

Posted on by Posted in Accidents, Santa Ana, SAPD Leave a comment

Connie Gale Simms

Santa Ana Police Department

Advisory: Family Sought for 79-Year-Old Female Involved in Serious Traffic Collision

Injured Party: Connie Gale Simms (79) Unknown

On Sunday, August 19, 2018 at approximately 11:43 a.m., the Santa Ana Police Department received several calls in regards to a vehicle versus pedestrian collision in the parking lot of Goodwill Industries located in the 2700 block of W. 5th St. The female was reportedly in and out of consciousness but breathing. Upon their arrival, Orange County Fire Authority (OCFA) personnel briefly treated the female at the scene before she was transported to UCI Medical Center for treatment. Continue reading→

The FBI is looking for a Santa Ana man who was kidnapped

Posted on by Posted in Costa Mesa, Crime, FBI, Los Angeles County, Santa Ana 1 Comment

Ruochen Liao

The FBI is offering a reward of up to $25,000 for information leading to the recovery, alive or deceased, of Ruochen Liao, who co-owns  a Costa Mesa luxury-car dealership and resides in Santa Ana.

On July 16, 2018, at approximately 7:30 p.m., Ruochen “Tony” Liao was kidnapped in San Gabriel, California, by three men. He was last seen entering a dark-colored minivan in San Gabriel with a man later identified as “David”. Continue reading→

Two of Santa Ana’s City Council candidates are suing to remove their competitors from the ballot

Posted on by Posted in 2018 elections, Jose Solorio, Mirna Velasquez, Nelida Mendoza-Yanez, Phil Bacerra, Roman Reyna, Santa Ana Leave a comment

There are only two candidates running for the Santa Ana City Council’s Ward 4 – former Ward 5 Councilman Roman Reyna and former Planning Commissioner Phil Bacerra. They are both in hot water.

Bacerra has apparently retained well-known political lawyer Mark Rosen and they have sued to have Reyna removed from the ballot on the grounds that he apparently registered to vote four times in recent weeks, all at different addresses. It seems that Reyna kept picking addresses that are not in Ward 4.  Continue reading→

An SAPD officer rescued a lost python at a home in Santa Ana

Posted on by Posted in Pets, Public Safety, Santa Ana, SAPD Leave a comment

Picture Courtesy of the SAPD

Imagine coming home and finding a giant snake in your house? That happened to a Santa Ana family this Saturday, Aug. 18, according to the O.C. Register.

The family discovered the snake at their home, at the 900 block of South Main St., at about 1 a.m. As animal control officers were not available at that time, when the family called 911, the call was put through to the police on duty. Continue reading→

This week’s Cochino List includes Frida Cinema

Posted on by Posted in Disease, Food, Food & Health, Insects, OC Health Care, Restaurants, Santa Ana Leave a comment

The OC Health Care Agency has released a list of the eateries (including restaurants, caterers and even school kitchens) that they inspected and shut down for the week of Aug. 10 to 17, 2018. Most of these eateries reopen pretty quickly after the health inspectors determine their issues have been resolved. Here is the list:

  • The Frida Cinema, 305-100 E. Fourth St., Santa Ana, Closed: Aug. 14, Reason: Rodent infestation, Reopened: Aug. 15
  • 5W Baby Market, 1212 S. Bristol St., Suite 22, Santa Ana, Closed: Aug. 15, Reason: Cockroach infestation
  • Tortilleria Flor de Mexicali, 1212 S. Bristol St., Suite 18, Santa Ana, Closed: Aug. 14, Reason: Sewage overflow, Reopened: Aug. 15
  • Ostioneria Bahia, 144 S. Tustin Ave., Orange, Closed: Aug. 13, Reason: Cockroach infestation, Reopened: Aug. 13

Continue reading→

Nationwide Foundation donates $65K to a homeless shelter in Santa Ana

Posted on by Posted in Andrew Do, Charities, homeless, Orange County, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Nationwide Foundation Donates to OC Homeless Shelter

The Nationwide Foundation is helping Orange County provide assistance to the homeless community

On Monday, August 20, Nationwide Foundation will present a $65,000 check to The Midnight Mission to install a pet area at Orange County’s Courtyard homeless shelter, one of the few homeless shelters in Orange County that accepts pets. There aren’t many places for homeless people with pets to go. As a result, many choose to continue living on the streets, where they don’t have the same access to services. Nationwide Foundation, The Midnight Mission and Orange County look forward to breaking ground on the project and reaching more of the Orange County homeless community. Continue reading→

A Santa Ana man got only six years in prison after a DUI crash that killed two including a child

Posted on by Posted in Crime, OCDA, Santa Ana Leave a comment

David Wayne Cote, 54, and his nephew, Ivan Sandoval

Armando Edgar Duran Cruz, a 38-year-old Santa Ana man, was sentenced Friday to only six years in prison for a DUI crash that killed another man and his 6-year-old nephew in Santa Ana, according to the O.C. Register.

Cruz pleaded guilty April 30 to two counts of gross vehicular manslaughter and driving drunk causing injury, according to the OCDA.

Cruz got a light sentence as part of a plea bargain with Orange County Superior Court Judge Robert Fitzgerald. Continue reading→

Young man arrested for stabbing a man multiple times new Fairview Park

Posted on by Posted in Costa Mesa, Crime Leave a comment

Costa Mesa Police Department

Advisory: Attempted murder suspect arrested for stabbing man multiple times near Fairview Park

ATTEMPTED MURDER SUSPECT ARRESTED FOR STABBING MAN MULTIPLE TIMES NEAR FAIRVIEW PARK

Victim: Male, 41, Costa Mesa

COSTA MESA, Calif. – The Costa Mesa Police Department (CMPD) arrested Gavin Christopherflo Delgardo, Jr., 19, Costa Mesa, yesterday for repeatedly stabbing a man, who was out for a walk, near Fairview Park.

On Aug. 16, 2018, at 8:54 p.m., officers responded to the intersection of Placentia Avenue and Fairview Park regarding a male lying in the roadway of southbound Placentia Avenue. The man was bleeding profusely from numerous stab and slash wounds to his torso. He had been out for a walk and was assaulted by an unknown suspect. The victim was transported to a nearby hospital in critical condition, and he is now stable and recovering from his wounds. Continue reading→

Two young men were stabbed, one fatally, at a party in Santa Ana last night

Posted on by Posted in Crime, Santa Ana, SAPD Leave a comment

Santa Ana Police Department

Advisory: SAPD Detectives Investigating Homicide – 2000 Block South Eastwood Avenue.

  • Victim #1: Deceased- Andrew Loera (18) Santa Ana
  • Victim #2: Stable Condition- Male (18)

On Saturday, August 18, 2018, at 11:56 PM, police officers from the Santa Ana Police Department responded to reports of an unsanctioned outdoor party in the commercial area located in the cul-de-sac of 2000 South Eastwood Avenue. Responding officers encountered a large group of party-goers leaving the scene. Witnesses reported two male subjects down in the street. Continue reading→

Firefighters rescued two victims from a fire this evening in the Washington Square neighborhood

Posted on by Posted in Fires, OCTA, Santa Ana Leave a comment

Santa Ana firefighters from the OCFA responded to a structure fire this evening at the 1000 block of N. Olive Street, in the Washington Square Neighborhood. Two victims were reported to be trapped in the structure.

The firefighters were able to extinguish the flames. They then rescued the victims and they searched the structure. They confirmed that ere were no additional missing or trapped persons. Continue reading→