State boosts cold case reward

Law enforcement officials are hoping an increased reward will generate new leads in the decades long search for a woman last seen alive in Turlock.

Drunk driving prevention program showing results

The Winter Holiday anti-drunk driving campaign has already resulted in a significant number of arrests, according to the Turlock Police Department, the overseeing agency for the local Avoid the 12 program.

Atwater man charged with sexual assault of child

An Atwater man has been arrested on the allegation that he molested a 7-year-old girl at a daycare center, according to the Merced County Sheriff's Department.

Fatal shooting remains a mystery

The investigation into Turlock's only homicide thus far for the year remains ongoing as there are few clues into the death of Luis Manuel Maldonado Rodriguez.

Drug deal goes awry, leaves two injured

A shooting in Delhi that authorities initially believed occurred during a home invasion robbery, turned out to be the outcome of a drug deal gone bad.

Couple charged with mother’s murder

A baby stolen from his mother has been reunited with his family and the couple suspected of killing his mother sits behind bars.

Teens nabbed in Delhi bust

Two Turlock teenagers were arrested on multiple theft-related charges after being caught by Merced County Sheriff's deputies with stolen property at a Delhi service station.

Police offer rape defense course

In celebration of January being National Self Defense Awareness Month, the Turlock Police Department and Stanislaus State University Police are working together to provide Rape Aggression Defense (R.A.D.) training to the Turlock community. The course is offered for free and is open to women only. The 12-hour course is broken up into three sessions over a period of two weeks. The R.A.D. Systems Basic ...

Investigators haul in drugs, suspects in two busts

The Stanislaus County Sheriff's Department and the Modesto Police Department made two separate drug busts Wednesday that resulted in the seizure of approximately four pounds of various narcotics.

Beware of criminals posing as PG&E workers

Pacific Gas and Electric Company is sending out warnings to residents to be on the look-out for scammers out trolling for victims this holiday season.

Couple may have tried to sell missing baby

In a case already peppered with unusual twists, Merced County Sheriff's detectives are now investigating the possibility that a couple tried to sell a baby that may have belonged to a homicide victim and later abandoned on a doorstep.

Traffic stop yields drug arrest

Stanislaus County Sheriff's patrol deputies, working a special burglary suppression assignment with the Hughson Police Services, arrested a Modesto man on numerous drug-related felonies, during a traffic stop Monday.Deputies were patrolling near the intersection of Hatch and Gilbert roads at 12:11 a.m., when they noticed a 2000 Chevrolet speeding and driven running stop signs. Sheriff's deputies made a traffic stop, contacted the driver and could immediately ...

Detectives continue fatal shooting probe

Investigators have determined the identity of Turlock's first homicide in 2010, but few other details of the fatal shooting have emerged.

Burned body identified as missing Planada woman

The charred human remains found in a Snelling orchard Thursday were positively identified Tuesday as that of a missing Planada woman. Also on Tuesday an infant baby boy was found on a door step in Le Grand and the Merced County Sheriff's Department is trying to determine if it is the woman's missing 2-month-old son.

Turlock couple tied up, robbed at gunpoint

An elderly married couple were the victims of what appears to be a random home invasion robbery that occurred in Turlock Friday afternoon.

Candlelight vigil planned

The Stanislaus County District Attorney's Office Victim Services Program is sponsoring the 15th annual Homicide Victims' Candlelight Vigil and Memorial Tree Lighting at 6 p.m. Tuesday. District Attorney Birgit Fladager will open the ceremony on the Courthouse Lawn located at 1100 I Street in Modesto. Friends and family ...

Police identify driver in fatal hit and run; whereabouts unknown

Drive-by shooting injures one man

The Turlock Police Department is investigating a drive-by shooting that injured one man Sunday afternoon. The victim, a 23-year-old man, sustained a gunshot wound to his hip during the assault. The injury is not considered life-threatening, said Turlock Police spokesperson Officer Mayra Lewis. The incident happened around 3:30 p.m. Sunday in the 300 block of West F Street. The victim and a 46-year-old man were walking along F Street when a ...

CHP serves up maximum enforcement period for holiday travel

The California Highway patrol is planning a maximum enforcement period for the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. The CHP will be specifically looking for people not using their seat belts. The Thanksgiving holiday reporting period begins at 6 p.m. tonight and runs through 11:59 p.m. Sunday. "Motorists are less likely to encounter one of our officers by simply wearing their seat belt," said CHP Commissioner Joe Farrow. "Not only does the law require ...

Turlock man faces attempted kidnapping charges

A Turlock man who was estranged from his girlfriend and mother of his child was arrested Sunday evening after he allegedly broke into her Tenth Street apartment unit in Ceres in an attempt to take their daughter. Ceres police were called at 11:25 p.m. after Ivan Lara, 21, went to the woman's house, repeatedly rang the door bell and entered through a screened window. Police said he wrestled with the woman for the ...

Police make arrest in drive-by shooting

A Turlock man wanted for a drive-by shooting that injured one man was arrested Thursday at his home, where Turlock police investigators seized several firearms. The suspect, Hector Cruz, 31, was booked into Stanislaus County Jail on a charge of attempted murder for the Oct. 2 shooting in the 1100 block of Picard Lane. According to the police report, the male victim of the shooting had been arguing with a man about ...

Police name suspect in Los Gallos shooting

The suspect who allegedly shot another man inside a Turlock restaurant has been identified by the Turlock Police Department and remains a wanted individual. The suspected shooter from the Nov. 4 attack at the Los Gallos restaurant has been identified as Jorge Emanuel Martinez, 26. Martinez is wanted for assault with a deadly weapon. According to the police report, Martinez allegedly got into an argument with two brothers at the restaurant on ...

Thieves targeting catalytic converters

The Turlock Police Department has issued a warning to the owners of catalytic converters that there has been a surge in thefts of the equipment from the back of trucks.

Woman punches officer

Three women engaged in a scuffle outside a Turlock restaurant and bar ended their night in handcuffs after one of them punched a Turlock Police officer in the face. Arrested outside of Wellington's Station Sunday on suspicion of battery were Rosa Ledezma, 24 and Shawna Aguiar, 22. Christina Harlan, 21, was arrested on a charge of assaulting a peace officer. Officers were dispatched to 10 E. Main Street shortly after 1:30 a.m. ...

Carjacking suspect apprehended near scene of robbery

A Turlock woman who allegedly stole a man's vehicle at gunpoint and then parked it outside a house less than a block away was arrested Sunday night on suspicion of carjacking. The alleged robbery was reported shortly before 11 p.m. Sunday in the 1000 block of South Avenue. According to the Turlock Police Department, Mayra Viveros, 26, pointed a handgun at the male victim and demanded his car and his cell phone. ...

Police find phony money during traffic stops

A traffic stop Monday morning led to the discovery of more than $7,000 in counterfeit money, two arrests and opened up the possibility that hundreds of phony bills could be circulating at Turlock businesses. The investigation was set into motion Monday morning when a Turlock police officer pulled over a vehicle in the area of W. Olive Avenue and N. Broadway for a traffic violation. One of the occupants in the vehicle, 29-year-old ...

Hit and run driver injures motorcyclist

An observant witness helped Turlock police officers find and arrest a suspected hit and run driver who injured a motorcyclist Tuesday morning. The suspect, identified by the police department as Rodrigo Gonzalez Gutierrez, 35, was arrested hours after the incident was reported. The motorcyclist suffered a broken leg and other injuries from the collision. The collision happened just before 7 a.m. Tuesday at W. Main Street and N. Tully Road. <p ...

Farmer dies trying to stop trash dump

Authorities have arrested the man they say ran a truck into a Keyes area farmer during a pursuit and possible confrontation over the illegal dumping of trash on a rural Keyes Road property last week.

Police seek driver in fatal crash; family looks for answers about what really happened that night

Police investigators are still seeking the driver of a car that crashed into a house killing 18-year-old Taylor Vessel, and Vessel's family is looking for answers on what really happened that night. Images from a convenience store's surveillance camera were released with the hope that the public might be able to identify a man deemed "a person of interest" in the fatal collision. Police have been searching since Saturday for the man ...

Burglar found in closet

Turlock Police officers arrested a suspected burglar after finding him hiding in a closet holding stolen property and hiding a hammer in his pants. The suspect was identified by the police department as 27-year-old Carlos Romo. The report of a burglary in progress was made around 4 a.m. Monday at a home in the 1000 block of Park Street. Officers searched the home and found Romo hiding in the closet in ...