Local News

Wasco State Prison Correctional Officer and a Minnesota Resident Arrested for Conspiring to Traffic Cocaine and Methamphetamine

BAKERSFIELD - Leonard Velazquez-Martinez, 50, of Minnesota, and Joseph Andrade, 38, of Bakersfield, were arrested Monday for conspiring to possess with intent to distribute cocaine and methamphetamine, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced. At the time of his arrest, Andrade was employed as a Correctional Officer at Wasco State Prison in Wasco, California.

According to court documents, in June 2019, in Kern County, the defendants conspired to purchase approximately 40 pounds of methamphetamine and two kilograms of cocaine from an individual who defendants believed was a narcotics supplier, but who was actually an undercover law enforcement officer. On June 24, 2019, the defendants arrived at a location in Kern County to purchase the methamphetamine and cocaine from the undercover officer.

Flagrant TITLE IX Violations at Madera High May Cost Taxpayers Millions

MADERA - The first thing that comes to mind when walking through the one-year-old boy's baseball stadium at Madera High School is, “Wow! What a beautiful monument to the game of high school baseball.”

From the aluminum stadium seats that wrap around the infield from dugout to dugout, the granite walls with the lists of past Championship teams, the concession stand with handicap accessible restrooms, padded backstops, multi-inning scoreboard, school name and logo cut into the batter’s box, batter’s eye screen in center field all the way up to the air-conditioned press box that sits atop of this brand new $2 million facility.

Drug Conspiracy Convictions of Former Fresno Deputy Police Chief Affirmed on Appeal

FRESNO - The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the convictions of former Fresno deputy police chief Keith Foster, 55, for criminal conspiracies involving heroin and marijuana, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced today.

On May 23, 2017, a federal jury in Fresno found Foster guilty of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin and conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute marijuana. On November 13, 2017, U.S. District Judge Anthony W. Ishii sentenced Foster to four years in prison. Foster then filed an appeal, challenging his two criminal convictions. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals rejected Foster’s claims and upheld his convictions.

President of Modesto Hells Angels Chapter Among Four Defendants Charged in Drug Conspiracy

FRESNO - A criminal complaint was unsealed today against four individuals, including the president of the Modesto Hells Angels Motorcycle Club, charging them with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

Charged in the criminal complaint are Modesto residents Randy Picchi, 61, president of the club; his wife Tina Picchi, 51; Michael Mize, 61; and Michael Pack, 32, a prospect with the club. Randy Picchi, Tina Picci, and Mize were arrested today and are in custody. They will appear in federal court on Wednesday in Fresno.

ACLU Claims Madera County Violated California’s Sanctuary Law in Complying with ICE: Demand $750,000 in Restitution

MADERA — The ACLU Foundation of Northern California filed a complaint Wednesday with Madera County for illegally re-detaining and transferring former resident Ivan Santos Cuevas to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which then deported him to Mexico.

According to the ACLU the Madera County Jail officers’ actions were a flagrant violation of the California Values Act. Santos Cuevas’ case is just the latest example of a local law enforcement agency violating California’s sanctuary law, which prohibits alerting federal immigration agents of an individual’s release date from county jail and transferring him unless he has been convicted of certain crimes. These include a serious or violent felony or criminal offenses that can be charged as a felony or misdemeanor.