News

FRESNO  -   High-ranking Nuestra Familia prison gang member Salvador Castro Jr., 50, pleaded guilty today to conspiring to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute more than 500 grams of methamphetamine, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced. According to court documents, Castro used a contraband cellphone from inside Pleasant Valley State Prison in Fresno County to arrange for the formation of a new street gang regiment in Kings and Tulare Counties. According to the plea agreement, Castro was recorded on a wiretap conspiring with associates outside of prison to distribute cocaine and methamphetamine.

Between May 5, 2019, and May 15, 2019, Castro coordinated the transportation of approximately 10 pounds of methamphetamine from the Sacramento area to a residence in Visalia. Castro arranged for co-conspirators outside of prison to protect the narcotics during transit, and when the drugs arrived in Visalia, Castro and his co-conspirators discussed plans to distribute the methamphetamine to buyers in the Central Valley.

MADERA – Investigators with the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation raided the home of Hedrick Edward “Eddie” Block (44) Friday afternoon on the 900 block of East Cleveland Avenue in Madera.  Block was one of the thousands of trespassers to enter the grounds of the United States Capitol Building while filming himself, beyond the established security barriers in Washington DC on January 6 of this year.

Agents notified the Madera County Sheriff’s Department before the noontime raid as a courtesy to local law enforcement, who were on hand as well as Madera Police to assist in the serving of the warrants. The FBI spent approximately four hours removing electronic devices and digital media owned by Block. According to Block even his cable box from Xfinity and cell phone were seized by the Federal officers. Block said in a podcast published following the raid that he believes over 25 officers were in his house during the service of the warrant.

FRESNO -  Joey Barron (31) of Fresno, has been charged in a felony complaint with crimes including murder, gross vehicular manslaughter while impaired, driving under the combined influence of alcohol and a drug causing great bodily injury, driving under the influence of alcohol causing great bodily injury, and driving on a suspended license. The charges are related to a vehicle collision which occurred on Highway 168 near the Shields offramp in the early morning hours of January 2, 2021.

It is alleged that during that collision, the defendant lost control of his vehicle and veered onto the shoulder of the highway, causing his vehicle to roll. The 30-year-old male passenger was injured during the collision and pronounced deceased at the scene by paramedics. Following an investigation by the California Highway Patrol, Officers concluded that the Defendant was under the influence of alcohol and drugs.

ATWATER - The Atwater Police Department Detectives on January 2^nd. with the assistance of the Merced County Sheriff’s STAR team and the Merced County District Attorney’s Office were able to find and arrest a suspect in the December 30^th, 2020 homicide on Atwater Boulivad.

The suspect was arrested in the City of Merced at a local hotel on a warrant obtained with information obtained during the investigation. The arrested subject is identified as Matthew Shimkus (30) a resident of Atwater. During the arrest, officers located a firearm, narcotics, and stolen property.

FRESNO  -   Mario Alberto Rangel, 29, of Fresno, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd to four years in prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced. According to court documents, on Oct. 22, 2019, law enforcement officers attempted to stop Rangel for a traffic violation, but he failed to yield.

Moments later, Rangel crashed into another car, then exited his car and fled the scene on foot. Fresno Police officers eventually caught up to him and arrested him. The car that he abandoned was searched, and a loaded shotgun was found in the back seat. Rangel is prohibited from possessing firearms because of his prior criminal record, including a 2018 conviction for assault with a firearm on a person.

FRESNO  -  David Vann, 29, of Fresno, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd to nine years and two months in prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced. According to court documents, Vann failed to yield to police officers during an attempted traffic stop. He then led officers on a vehicle chase, during which he failed to stop at a stop sign and stoplight, and drove southbound in the northbound lane of traffic.

After exiting the vehicle, Vann discarded a firearm in bushes in a residential area. Vann is a convicted felon prohibited from possessing a firearm. He was on post-release community supervision at the time of his arrest in this case. This case was the product of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Fresno Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Katherine Schuh prosecuted the case.