An assistant manager at the Walmart on Herndon Avenue in Clovis was arrested Wednesday for alleged bank and credit card fraud totaling at least $100,000, federal authorities said. The arrest of Alena Nicole George, 42, came after a federal grand jury in Fresno brought a five-count indictment against her in...
Human Remains Found at Idaho Property of Man Tied to Missing Kids
BOISE, Idaho — Authorities said they uncovered human remains at an Idaho man’s home Tuesday as they investigated the disappearance of his new wife's two children — a case that's drawn global attention for its ties to two other mysterious deaths and the couple's doomsday beliefs. Chad Daybell, who married...
FBI Looks for Link Between 2 Ambush Killings of Officers in California
SANTA CRUZ — The FBI and local investigators are trying to determine a possible link between the ambush-style killing of a Northern California sheriff's deputy Saturday night and that of a federal officer who was fatally shot outside the U.S. courthouse in Oakland more than a week ago. The FBI...
Official: FBI Finds Link Between Pensacola Gunman, Al-Qaida
The FBI has found a link between the gunman in a deadly attack at a military base last December and an al-Qaida operative, a U.S. official said Monday. Attorney General William Barr and FBI Director Chris Wray were set to hold a news conference to announce developments in the shooting late last...
Burr Steps Aside as Senate Intelligence Chair Amid FBI Probe
WASHINGTON — Republican Sen. Richard Burr temporarily stepped aside as chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee on Thursday after the FBI served a search warrant for his cellphone as part of an investigation into a well-timed sale of stocks tied to the coronavirus pandemic. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced...
Hackers’ New Target During Pandemic: Video Conference Calls
WASHINGTON — Ceri Weber had just begun to defend her dissertation when the chaos began: Echoes and voices interrupted her. Someone parroted her words. Then Britney Spears music came on, and someone told Weber to shut up. Someone threatened to rape her. Hackers had targeted the meeting on the video...
This Meth Ring Stretched From Modesto to Alaska
A Modesto man was sentenced Monday to 26 years and eight months in prison for his role in a methamphetamine distribution ring reaching to Juneau, Alaska. Listen to this article: U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced the sentence for 32-year-old Joseph Vasquez Jr. in a news release Monday afternoon. According to court...
Clovis Man Gets 20 Years for Child Pornography
Judge Dale A. Drozd sentenced a Clovis man to 20 years in federal prison for production of child pornography following a plea deal. Listen to this article: Rocky Cottrell, 37, pleaded guilty to one count of sexual exploitation of a minor. The plea agreement and sentence were entered into the court...
Fresno COG Recovers from 'Catastrophic' Cyber Attack
Cyber hackers, believed to be from Russia, encrypted thousands of files from the Fresno Council of Governments, demanding an $8,000 ransom. The public agency declined to pay and lost access to the files. Listen to this article: Fresno COG called it a "catastrophic loss of data to the agency." The...
Saudi Gunman Tweeted Against US Before Naval Base Shooting
PENSACOLA, Fla. — The Saudi gunman who killed three people at the Pensacola naval base had apparently gone on Twitter shortly before the shooting to blast U.S. support of Israel and accuse America of being anti-Muslim, a U.S. official said Sunday as the FBI confirmed it is operating on the...