News

FRESNO - Michael Shafer, 34, of Modesto, was sentenced Friday to five years in prison for conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin and conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute marijuana, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, Shafer was the vice president of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club in Modesto in 2019. As part of a years-long investigation into the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club, investigators obtained a court-authorized wiretap for Shafer’s phone. The wiretapped calls and messages showed that Shafer was conspiring to distribute marijuana and heroin. Specifically, in April 2019, Shafer conspired with a former Hells Angels member who was incarcerated in Pleasant Valley State Prison to smuggle heroin into prison.

FRESNO - Margaret Mims, Sheriff for Fresno County has announced she will not seek re-election this year as she plans on retiring from law enforcement. Mims said in a press release Friday, “After much thought and reflection, I have decided to retire at the end of my current term as Fresno County Sheriff-Coroner – Public Administrator. This decision does not come easily as I still get such satisfaction out of public service, but after 42 years, the time is right for me to retire while I am still healthy and can be active with my family.”

The sheriff began her law enforcement career in January 1980 as a police officer for the City of Kerman, then was hired in August 1983 as a Deputy Sheriff for the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office. She was promoted through the ranks of Sergeant, Lieutenant, Captain, Assistant Sheriff, and then serving as the elected Sheriff for 16 years by the end of my current term.

FRESNO  -  Johnathan Eldon Moss Jr., 35, of Merced, was detained Thursday on a two‑count federal indictment charging him with being a felon in possession of ammunition and possession with intent to distribute narcotics, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Moss’s home and on his vehicle. Those searches yielded multiple unmarked, privately made firearms known as “ghost guns,” several hundred rounds of unexpended ammunition, high-capacity rifle and pistol magazines, a high-capacity speed loader for rifle magazines, a ledger showing weapons and ammunition sold, a body armor vest, cocaine, psilocybin, and a total of $10,990 in cash. Moss has felony convictions for firearms and drug offenses, domestic violence and stalking and is prohibited from possessing firearms and ammunition.

FRESNO  -   A total of eight defendants have been charged in a superseding indictment for submitting over $25 million in fraudulent unemployment insurance claims in the identities of inmates, minor children, and others to the California Employment Development Department (EDD) during the COVID-19 pandemic. The indictment was announced today by U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert following the arrest of all the defendants.

The original indictment charged Daryol Richmond, 30, an inmate at Kern Valley State Prison; Telvin Breaux, 29, an inmate at the California Correctional Institution in Tehachapi; and Holly White, 30, of Los Angeles, with conspiracy to commit mail fraud and aggravated identity theft. The superseding indictment adds Cecelia Allen, 33, of Downey; Fantasia Brown, 33, of Los Angeles; Tonisha Brown, 28, of Los Angeles; Fantesia Davis, 32, of Victorville; and Shanice White, 28, of Hawthorne. They are also charged with conspiracy to commit mail fraud and aggravated identity theft. Richmond and Breaux are inmates at the Kern Valley State Prison and California Correctional Institute, respectively. The remaining defendants reside in the Southern California area.

FRESNO  -   A federal grand jury returned a three-count indictment today against Reymundo Jose Mendez, 40, of Modesto, charging him with possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute, possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and being a felon in possession of firearms, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, officers began investigating Mendez for suspected drug sales and firearms possession in December 2021. During a search warrant executed at the Arrow Inn in Modesto on Jan. 25, 2022, officers located two loaded firearms in Mendez’s pants pockets, and another loaded shotgun in his motel room. Officers also located methamphetamine, suspected fentanyl, and two digital scales in the room.

TULARE – World Ag Expo® returns live for its 55th show on Tuesday, February 8, in Tulare, California. Gates will open at 9:00 a.m.

The red carpet rolls out on Tuesday for Opening Ceremonies at 8:00 a.m. in the Heritage Complex Banquet Hall. The ceremonial opening will begin with an awards ceremony for Top-10 New Products Winners and “We Believe in Growing” scholarship winners, sponsored by E.M. Tharp. Past World Ag Expo® Show Chairmen, VIPs, and elected officials will be in attendance.