Crime, Fire & Courts

An 86-year-old Fresno man was convicted on Aug. 26 for a double-murder committed more than three decades ago in Prunedale. According  to Monterey County Sheriff spokesman Andres Rosas, Ira Ulyesses Bastian murdered George Smith, 67, and Eva Thompson, 79 in a Prunedale restaurant on Nov....

Construction work has begun on Main Street, between 5th Street and E. Lake Avenue, which will mean occasional closures, Watsonville officials said. Work will take place from 9am to 3pm, Sept. 2 through Oct. 3. Both northbound and southbound lanes of Main Street will have...

A Santa Cruz man known for coaching Pop Warner football in Santa Cruz was arrested Tuesday for an alleged sexual assault involving a minor. Christopher John Weekes, 32, was charged with lewd and lascivious acts on a child under 14, oral copulation with a minor...

A 34-year-old man was shot and killed Wednesday night near a suite of restaurants and businesses that includes Chipotle and Habit Burger on the 1300 block of Main Street at Auto Center Drive. Police got a call about 8:30pm of shots fired and a person...

The body of a 15-year-old male who went missing July 23 in Watsonville in the Laken area off of Holohan Road was found in the waters of College Lake over the weekend. Nicholas Magana-Zamora was last seen around 11am on July 23 after leaving his...

A man living in a homeless encampment in the Arana Gulch area was arrested Tuesday after he was found with illegal drugs, cash, police scanners and a passel of high-end stolen bikes totaling more than $30,000. Joshua Morris, 35, was charged with grant theft, possession...

A Scotts Valley man died Sunday morning after his minivan plunged into the ocean from the Santa Cruz Wharf. The Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office identified the victim as William Westerman, 65.  Santa Cruz Police said Westerman was driving a white Toyota Sienna minivan with his...

A suspicious bag left leaning against a California Highway Patrol vehicle in Prunedale Monday—which prompted a response from the Monterey County Sheriff’s Bomb Squad and the brief detainment of the man who left it—turned out to be nothing more than a lost computer bag. According...

At an upcoming meeting, the Watsonville City Council will consider renewing a contract with Atlanta, Ga.-based Flock Safety, which has installed 20 license plate reader cameras throughout the city. Watsonville signed a two-year contract with Flock in 2023 for $132,000. In the past six months, the...

Two people died in a solo-vehicle crash early Saturday morning north of Santa Cruz. The California Highway Patrol said a black 2015 Chrysler 200 was traveling south on Highway 1 around 4am at an undetermined speed. For reasons still under investigation, the Chrysler crossed into...