Valley Center overall crime rates dropped 16 percent from 2010 to 2014 and 14 percent in 2014 compared to 2013, according to a San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) report issued recently. It was a mixed bag for Valley Center, however, with violent crime, although relatively low, increasing 37 percent from 2010 to 2014 and 35 percent from 2013 to 2014 while regional violent crime…
Planning on going by the Escondido Police Department building at 1100 N Centre City Parkway through midnight tonight? Better have your driver’s license on hand and maintain your sobriety. Police have a DUI/Driver’s License Checkpoint set up in the southbound lanes, south of El Norte Parkway. Somewhat controversial, yet highly in your faces, Escondido police had promised to set up “a DUI/Driver’s License Checkpoint at an…
Oops, Chito’s Taco Shop ATM, with all due respect to Britney Spears, they did it again. Thieves for the second time in less than a month hit the mom-and-pop taco shop, just off Interstate 15 by Westfield North County mall, and this time they got what they sought — the shop’s ATM machine. When last we went Britney Spears at the Del Lago Boulevard eatery…
Since last we met, Escondido-San Marcos-Valley Center has been the scene of some wild time, criminally speaking and otherwise. A bittersweet tale at best, tragedy and crime, some deadly and others of the head-scratching variety have been in the news. Here are some of the highlights and — shall we say — lowlights of the last few weeks. Skylar Tosic still missing Continuing to confound…
Remember when Escondido Police last closed down a local massage parlor allegedly involved in prostitution? Seemed like just last month. Or cracked down on human trafficking, this time last September? Guess what? Theeeeey’re back. Police, that is, raiding even more Escondido massage parlors allegedly engaged in illegal activity, this time of the municipal code violation or other civil miscreant kind. “Although the majority of massage…
Death is never far from a hospital, but in the case of James Donaldson, 63, of Oceanside, death came at a Palomar Medical Center parking area. Donaldson died as a friend pushed him in his wheelchair across the emergency room’s parking area’s front entrance street at 2185 Citracado Parkway, just before 6 p.m. Saturday, according to Escondido police. An 89-year-old man, later identified as John…
Around 10:30 a.m. Saturday, a 27-year-old San Marcos man touched off a touchy incident at Rancho Vallecitos Mobile Estates, 3535 Linda Vista Dr., San Marcos. First, he killed his mother’s turtle. Then, he threatened to kill his mother. Nearby homes were evacuated during a five hour standoff ended by the San Marcos Sheriffs SWAT Team with tear gas. After about a five hour standoff with…
A brazen young thief was caught by surveillance cameras in the act early Wednesday of robbing HQ Too Wigs on Grand Avenue. At least a half-dozen wigs valued at more than $300 were taken in the Wednesday robbery. (Surveillance video of early Wednesday wig shop theft. Break-in occurs just after 1:00 mark.) As shocking as that action was, it also represented the third break-in at…
It was a deadly start of the driving week on Escondido roads with the San Diego Medical Examiner’s Office late Tuesday identifying the latest local road victim as Galileo Esteban Diego, 21, of Temecula. Diego died immediately after he crashed his silver 2006 Dodge Caravan westbound on Country Club Lane near Broadway just before 7:30 p.m. Monday. His minivan was nearly torn in half when…
Don’t look now, but Cal State University San Marcos (CSUSM) was the scene of a terrorist attack on Wednesday. Good thing school doesn’t resume sessions until Jan. 25, so campus was fairly devoid of students. With terrorism and school shooting scenarios in mind, CSUSM staged an active shooter drill where fake became real for training purposes. About 100 North County police, fire and hospital personnel…