Crime, Fire & Courts

A 42-year-old Castroville man has been arrested on suspicion of human trafficking, attempted murder and multiple other felony charges following an investigation that began with a reported assault outside a local shopping center, according to the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office. Eric Adam Melendrez was taken...

Source: Watsonville Police Department April 24 • Someone stole a vehicle parked on the 100 block of Menker Street at about 6am. • An unknown suspect kicked in the door of a residence on the 100 block of Rio Del Pajaro Court at about 7:30pm. No suspect...

The Watsonville Police Department last week welcomed its newest officer. Beau Baugher began during his time as a Watsonville Police Cadet in 2011, where he first developed a strong connection to serving the community. Before joining, he worked as a paramedic with American Medical Response and...

A man was taken into custody after a shooting Saturday night near Riverside Drive and Marchant Street. Just before 7pm, Watsonville Police responded to reports of shots fired at the heavily traveled intersection. They learned the suspect, 49-year-old Sandro Vega, had been seen outside a...

Public defenders in Santa Cruz County will join colleagues across California and the nation April 23 in a coordinated protest highlighting what they describe as chronic underfunding and unmanageable caseloads that threaten defendants’ constitutional right to counsel. Chief Public Defender Heather Rogers is urging community...

A man was taken to a trauma center Friday night after he was shot in the head while driving along Freedom Boulevard. According to radio dispatches, the man was driving north on Freedom when a pickup with several people onboard pulled alongside his Toyota sedan...

A 15-year-old was arrested Wednesday on the 500 block of Rodriguez Street in connection with a Feb. 8 shooting. Watsonville police placed nearby Radcliff Elementary School on lockdown at about 11:50am as a preventative measure. The lockdown was lifted about 10 minutes later. The suspected 16-year-old...

A wanted suspect out of Santa Cruz County has been arrested after Watsonville Police, aided by their Flock camera system, found him driving a stolen car in Watsonville.    Officers on patrol were alerted that a stolen silver Toyota Avalon was in the area of the...

Two loaded firearms were taken off Watsonville streets in two separate incidents over the weekend. The first incident began during a routine traffic stop Friday night near downtown when Watsonville Police tried to stop a car driven by Juan Manuel Figueroa. Though he initially tried...

Editor's note: This story was updated at 10:50am on April 10 with new information. Watsonville officials said Friday that a proposed plan to house a designated sexually violent predator at a Main Street motel has been halted after the property owner withdrew, citing community opposition. The...