East County News Service

May 5, 2016 (La Mesa) – A suspect remains at large after ramming two vehicles including a police car in La Mesa early this morning, then fleeing the scene. 

East County News Service

May 3, 2016 (Warner Springs) – Extensive vandalism forced closure today of the entire Warner Unified School District complex, which includes elementary through high school classrooms as well as district offices.  The district's website states it hopes to reopen soon and will notify parents when children can return to school.

A maintenance worker arriving at work Wednesday morning discovered the damage, which included graffiti, broken windows, classrooms ransacked, furniture overturned and fire extinguishers discharged.  The worker called  Sheriff’s deputies at 5:15 a.m.

East County News Service

April 29, 2016 (Spring Valley) – A 21-year-old man was found in his vehicle last night in Spring Valley, suffering from a gunshot wound. 

East County News Service

April 28, 2016 (Pine Valley) -- .S. Border Patrol agents arrested a woman at the Interstate 8 checkpoint Tuesday for smuggling two Mexican nationals inside the trunk of her car.

East County News Service

April 23, 2016 (El Cajon) -- El Cajon Police Department Traffic Unit will be conducting a DUI/Drivers License Checkpoint on April 30th in the 500 block of Broadway between the hours of 8 p.m. to 3 a.m.  

By Mike Allen

April 21, 2016 (San Diego) -- Andy Tan Tai Moore would be celebrating his 32^nd birthday on April 23, except that he’s no longer alive.

Update as of April 19, 2016:  the victim's name has been released (Julio Caesar Edeza) and a suspect has been apprehended. Read more here.

By Miriam Raftery

April 18, 2016 (San Diego) – San Diego Police are searching for a suspect who set a homeless man on fire at 11:45 a.m. Sunday in a parking lot outside a CVS store  near the Rite Aid  on  Euclid Ave just north of highway 94. 

 The suspect asked for water, then lured the victim into his vehicle, a black Toyota 2-door pickup with a camper shell, then threw chemicals on him and set him afire, watching with chilling calm as the man suffered burns so severe that authorities indicate he is not expected to survive.

The suspect is described as a Hispanic man age 30-40, 6 feet tall and weighing about 170 pounds.  He wore a red hat, red shirt, and black pants. Authorities have released a sketch of the suspect showing a beard and mustache.

Source:  San Diego County Sheriff's Department

April 14, 2016 (San Diego) - Take a good look at the surveillance photo of a man wanted for punching a train conductor in the face.

East County News Service

Image:  FBI

April 13, 2016 (San Diego) — Sovereign citizens, a shadowy group of anti-government, anti-tax conspiracy theorists linked to violent attacks on law enforcement officers across the nation, have drawn the attention of Sheriff Bill Gore and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

East County News Service

April 9, 2016 (El Cajon) – The U.S. Department of Justice has announced the arrest of an El Cajon couple charged with forcing an Indonesian woman to work in their El Cajon home up to 18 hours a day without pay.  The victim was rescued after giving a note to a visiting nurse asking for help.

By Miriam Raftery

April 9, 2016 (Lakeside) --  A worker for a pest control company who arrived to remove a termite fumigation tent from a home at 9548 Farmington Drive in Lakeside Friday found an intruder in the home. The suspect fled and the employee pursued him in his work truck, said Sergeant Mike McNeill.

Source: El Cajon Police

April 7, 2016 (El Cajon) – Distracted driving is such an important safety issue that April is recognized as National Distracted Driving Awareness Month.  In California, Police, Sheriff and CHP officials are joining the Office of Traffic Safety, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), as well as law enforcement throughout the country, working together to focus on education as well as enforcement.

East County News Service

March 31, 2016 (Pine Valley) -- U.S. Border Patrol agents arrested a 31-year-old man after he allegedly attempted to smuggle four Mexican nationals last through the Border Patrol checkpoint near Pine Valley on March 25^th.

East County News Service

March 29, 2016 (La Mesa) – A man with a syringe confronted a 17-year-old boy outside a taco shop on Parkway Drive in La Mesa at 3:30 this afternoon, threatening to stab him with an HIV-infected needle unless the teen drove him to an undetermined location.

Source: La Mesa Chamber

March 18, 2016 (La Mesa) -- The La Mesa Chamber of Commerce will host La Mesa Police Chief Walt Vasquez for a breakfast meeting starting at 7:30 a.m. on Wednesday, April 13, at the Marie Callender’s restaurant, 6950 Alvarado Road, San Diego. Breakfast sponsors include Carl Burger Dodge Chrysler Jeep RAM World, El Camino Memorial Park and Hornbrook Center for Dentistry.