“It’s a complex case. We’re still working on it.” — Escondido police Lt. Ed Varso on death of woman found murdered in car on freeway ramp Monday. Escondido police Thursday morning closed the Interstate 15 on-ramp at El Norte Parkway for a second time in four days continuing to comb for clues in the murder of a 38-year-old woman driver just now identified as Elizabeth…
Five years after his last reputed heist, could the Geezer Bandit have surfaced at a San Marcos Chase Bank around 5 p.m. Friday, June 3 armed with a money-demand note, black box he said was a bomb and a handgun? No telling, at least for now as Michael Lehman, 81, was arrested on suspicion of attempted robbery and terroristic threats, among other charges, on Palomar…
Escondido Fire Department changes its guard in two weeks as Deputy Fire Chief Russell “Russ” Knowles replaces Chief Mike Lowry who retires after nearly 34 years with Escondido Fire. Lowry departs on June 3. Knowles takes command on June 5. As for Saturday, June 4? Don’t cry for Escondido, it’ll be fine, officials say. Knowles’ salary will be $183,214 annually. He’s no piker either, having…
Another day, another day in court has been set for Escondido Union School District Trustee Jose Fragozo. Judge Carlos Armour called for a pre-trial hearing on Wednesday, June 22 following Fragozo pleading not guilty to 13 felony charges related to allegedly misrepresenting his place of residence to run for school board. Fragozo’s attorney Victor Torres entered the plea. A preliminary hearing last month found enough…
Escondido police held yet another DUI checkpoint outside Police Headquarters Friday detaining zero DUI drivers among 1,579 vehicles passing through barricades. This followed similar checkpoints in March that caught two DUI drivers out of 1,120 vehicles and February that caught one DUI driver out of 1,393 vehicles. A November 2015 checkpoint also caught zero DUI drivers out of 2,514 vehicles inspected. Ten previous 2015 checkpoints…
Five Escondido schools in several neighborhoods were locked down Tuesday when a man carrying what turned out to be a pellet rifle was spotted in their vicinity. The first report of a man with a rifle came in around 11:30 a.m., according to Escondido police Lt. Al Owens. An Escondido parks employe said the man sat in a black BMW pointing the gun at nearby…
Former El Camino High School and San Diego State football star Reginald Grigsby Jr., 32, was sentenced this week to six years in prison for gross vehicular manslaughter without intoxication. That was the maximum penalty allowed by law. Grigsby pled guilty to the charge in March. During sentencing this week. Grigsby apologized for what he had done to the victim and his family. “I’m truly…
Improvised explosive devices, or IEDs, aren’t only for Iraq anymore. One of the highly improvised kind went off around 9 a.m. Thursday after being discovered by a teacher at a San Pasqual Academy bathroom and tossed into a nearby bush. San Diego County Sheriff’s deputies and CAL Fire officials responded to San Pasqual Academy around 9:15 a.m. after getting word of a reported threat to…
Night time was not the right time to party early Thursday at the normally quiescent San Marcos cul-de-sac in the 600 block of Helmsdale Road, off Kirkwall Drive near Palomar College. An intimate gathering of about 10 people erupted in an argument that led to gun shots, injuring a 20-tear-old female bystander as two men grappled over a loaded pistol. One man pulled out the…
Escondido Police issued a lengthy news release addressing the arrest of Rennard Cawkwell, 46, of Oceanside on suspicion of felony charges related to communicating online with a 16-year-old girl. The girl initially believed she was speaking to a 17-year-old boy, police said. Cawkwell was a registered sex offender previously on active GPS monitored parole, Escondido police Lt. Ed Varso said in the news release. After…