Update August 29, 2018: The victim has been identified as Susana Gotell, 41, of Santee.

By Miriam Raftery

August 28, 2018 (Lakeside) – A woman jogging on North Woodside Avenue near Riverford Road in Santee was struck by a Chevy work truck driven by Michael Woodfill, 46, tonight at 6:40 p.m.  

Susana Gotell, 41, was transported to Sharp Memorial Hospital with major injuries, but died shortly after arrival.  She was the mother of two teens, ages 16 and 18, Fox 5 News reports.

East County News Service

August 22, 2018 (Jacumba Hot Springs) – The Department of State Hospitals has proposed the release of Alvin Quarles, a sexually violent predator, at 43050 Desert Rose Ranch Road in Jacumba Hot Springs.  A serial rapist, Quarles attacked victims at knifepoint while they were sleeping in their homes or hotel rooms. He sometimes raped women in front of their husbands or boyfriends, and at times forced them to have sex while he watched.  Investigators suspect he was responsible for over a dozen assaults in San Diego County during the 1980s. In 1989, he was sentenced to 50 years in prison under a plea bargain.

By Miriam Raftery

August 11, 2018 (Santee) - A 52-year-old female inmate at Los Colinas Detention and Re-Entry Facility in Santee died in a local hospital, where she had been receiving treatment for the past six weeks.

East County News Service

August 8, 2018 (El Cajon) — A witness helped save an El Cajon Police officer today after a man attacked the officer with a hammer.

Police had been called to a Jack-in-the-Box regarding Robert Dille, 30, who was reportedly smashing windows and threatening people with a hammer. Officers found Dille a few blocks away at West Main Street and Van Houten around 11:20 a.m.

By Miriam Raftery

July 29, 2018 (El Cajon) – A man stabbed in front of a 7-11 store in the 700 block of Jamacha yesterday afternoon died after being transported to a local hospital, says Lt. Walt Miller with the El Cajon Police Department. 

Soon after the stabbing, reported at 2:05 p.m. Saturday, officers responded to a burglary at an apartment in the 1200 block of north Mollison.  They took a burglary suspect to a hospital  for medical issues unrelated to his arrest, according to Lt. Miller.

“Investigators are exploring the possibility that this suspect may be related to the stabbing based on a physical description provided by witnesses,” said Miller. That suspect’s identity has not been released. However a second suspect may still be at large.

By Miriam Raftery

July 26, 2018 (El Cajon)—A 75-year-old man suffered multiple non-life threatening stab wounds tonight in an attack at Second Street and East Madison Avenue in El Cajon. Witnesses called police at 7:55 p.m. to report the victim was on the ground near the intersection.

The suspect fled west on Madison, says Lieutenant Jason Taub, adding, “Witnesses were able to keep the suspect under observation and advise the police department of his current location.”

By Miriam Raftery

July 19, 2018 (Ramona) – A driver who reported his vehicle had been stolen at gunpoint has been arrested for filing a false report to conceal his involvement in a crash in Ramona.

According to Sgt. Jeremy Sheppard with the Sheriff’s department, Luis Solis, 19 and with a juvenile passenger have been charged with filing the false report after the Toyota Forerunner that Solis was driving rolled over at 630 Gem Lane in Ramona.

By Jose A. Alvarez, County of San Diego Communications Office

Video courtesy of San Diego County Meth Strike Force

July 11, 2018 (San Diego's East County) - Fourteen people were arrested Tuesday evening by law enforcement agencies from East County during saturation patrols and probation compliance checks in known hot spots for drug-related crime.

East County News Service

June 28, 2018 (El Cajon) -- The San Diego Regional Hate Crimes Coalition and the El Cajon Police Department are hosting a free community Forum on hate crimes, law enforcement and community resources. The event will be held on Tuesday, July 17 from 6-8 p.m. at the El Cajon Police Department’s community room at 100 Civic Center Way.

Please RSVP to Shastity.urias@usdoj.gov or call (619) 546-9399.

 By Miriam Raftery

Update June 28, 2018 -- The victim has been identified as Juan Martinez, 47, of Lemon Grove who suffered serious injuries to his upper body. The Medical Examiner's report determining cause of death has been sealed and the Sheriff's homicide investigation continues.

 June 22, 2018 (Lemon Grove) – An injured man who pounded on a door seeking help last night in Lemon Grove has died. A homicide investigation has been launched into the death of the man, who has not yet been identified.

 Startled residents called 9-1-1 shortly before 9 pm. after hearing banging on their door in the 7600 block of Lemon Avenue. When deputies arrived a short time later, they found a man who was lying on the ground, unresponsive, with visible injuries to his upper body.

By Miriam Raftery

June 21, 2018 (Spring Valley) – The Gas House 64 marijuana dispensary at 8818 Troy Street is the latest of many illegal pot shops to be shut down in Spring Valley.

Although marijuana use is legal in California, new marijuana dispensaries are illegal in the unincorporated parts of San Diego County.  Rancho San Diego Sheriff’s deputies served an abatement notice on the dispensary’s owners yesterday morning for violating a zoning ordinance.  Large amounts of marijuana, marijuana edibles, paraphernalia and other items were seized, though no arrests were made.

By Miriam Raftery

June 16, 2018 (Ramona) -- The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Violent Crimes Task Force (VCTF) ask your help to identify a man believed responsible for robbing two banks in Ramona and a bank in Mira Mesa over the past week.

Dubbed the “Skinny Bandit”, he is described as a light-skinned black man in his mid 20s to 30s, between 6 ft. and 6 ft. 6 inches tall with a slender build, weighing 140 to 170 pounds.  He claimed to have a weapon and in one robbery, threatened to shoot the teller, but no weapon was seen.

Below are details on each of the three robberies:

East County News Service

June 14, 2018 (Ramona) – Ramona Sheriff’s deputies responded to multiple silent robbery alarms at Chase Bank, located at 1467 Main Street in Ramona, on Tuesday, June 12^th shortly before 4 p.m.

A witness told deputies that a man threatened that he had a gun. No one was injured in the robbery, but the suspect fled before deputies arrived.

East County News Service

City has had 20 fatalities and 205 injury collisions with pedestrians in the past three years

June 11, 2018 (El Cajon) – The El Cajon Police Department will step up pedestrian safety enforcement operations in the month of June, focusing on collision causing factors involving motorists and pedestrians.  Routine traffic patrols will focus efforts in trouble spots, while special targeted patrols will also be deployed to crackdown on drivers and pedestrians who violate traffic laws meant to protect all roadway users, says Lieutenant Steve Kirk.

East County News Service

June 1, 2018 (El Cajon) – El Cajon Police seek public help to identify suspects in a stabbing overnight that left the victim with life-threatening injuries, according to Lt. Jason Taub with El Cajon Police Department.

Police responded to a call shortly before 2 a.m. from a caller who said an acquaintance was “bleeding out,” and then hung up.