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Watsonville
January 24, 2026

Brush fire scorches two acres

firefighters douse a grass fire on the 300 block of Amesti Road Friday.
CLOSE CALL Firefighters douse hot spots in a brush fire that erupted on the 300 block of Amesti Road Friday. An official from CalFire said the 3:20pm brush fire climbed to two acres before firefighters from Pajaro Valley Fire District, Watsonville and Central Fire...

Monterey County Sheriff’s deputies seeking armed robbery duo

Monterey County Sheriff investigators are looking for two suspects who committed armed robbery at the Express Market in Pajaro on Saturday. The suspects, both male, are currently at large and considered to be armed and dangerous. The first suspect was wearing a white beanie cap, dark...

Man dies from injuries in Castroville shooting

Marcelino Calixto Pastrana, 27, of Castroville has died after he was shot June 26 in the parking lot behind the Castroville Market, 10696 Merritt St.  The Monterey County Sheriff’s Office added that a second victim, a 17-year-old male from Salinas, remains hospitalized in critical condition. “We...

Body found along Pajaro River Levee

The discovery of a man's body along Pajaro River levee Thursday has prompted an investigation by the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office. Deputies were dispatched for a report of a body at 5am. A forensic examination on Friday determined the person was a male, but officials did...

Watsonville Police arrest group in huge fireworks and gun haul

Watsonville Police rounded up nearly 1,000 pounds of illegal fireworks after they uncovered a group of people—including a teenager—suspected of selling dangerous fireworks in Watsonville and across Santa Cruz, San Benito, and Monterey counties.  Watsonville Police spokeswoman Michelle Pulido said an investigation led them to...

Monterey County DA probes CHP fatal shooting

Monterey County District Attorney Jeannine Pacioni has begun an investigation into an officer-involved shooting on the Highway 101 northbound at Ralph Lane in Prunedale on March 15.  The California Highway Patrol was dispatched to a report of a solo vehicle collision with a guardrail on...

Watsonville Police aid in sideshow roundup

Watsonville Police teamed up with the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office in helping locate and impound one of five vehicles related to the illegal sideshow event that took place Feb. 2.  A joint enforcement operation took place that night with multiple law enforcement agencies. Based on...

Photo story: Car smashes into utility pole

A car shot off of northbound Green Valley Road at Doering Lane around 5:30am Tuesday and sheered a utility pole off at the base.  The car then careened across a sidewalk and through a wood fence before coming to a stop in an agricultural field.  California...

Three injured in mobile home fire

Three people were injured Tuesday morning when a fire broke out at a mobile home in the Portola Heights Mobile Home park on Freedom Boulevard. The fire erupted at 7:15am in unit 25 on Cresti Way. One neighbor who used the name Erika said she ran...

Watsonville man arrested in sexual assault

A 19-year-old Watsonville man has been arrested for allegedly kidnapping and sexually assaulting an underage girl.  Christopher Medina Amezquita was arrested in Capitola with help from Capitola Police, the Santa Cruz County Anti-Crime Team and the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office. He was booked into Santa Cruz...
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Letters to the Editor, Jan. 23–29

Passenger rail price estimates too high One can never convince  me that restoring the Santa Cruz Branch rail line for passenger rail would cost an...

Alliances in turmoil

Boys To Men