News

FRESNO -  After a two-day trial, a federal jury found Cyrus Dennis Braswell, 57, guilty today of three counts of mailing threatening communications, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, a federal judge in the District of Alaska sentenced Braswell in 1998. Thereafter, while an inmate at Mendota Federal Correctional Institute in Fresno County, Braswell mailed communications to Alaska in which he threated to murder the judge after he got out of prison.

FRESNO -  On Tuesday, a federal jury convicted David G. Bruce II, 32, of Merced, with conspiring to provide inmates with prohibited objects; attempting to possess marijuana and heroin with the intent to distribute; and taking a bribe as a public official, Special Agent in Charge James K. Cheng and U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

“The integrity and honesty of correctional officers are critical to the safety of our federal prisons. Our office strives to ensure that individuals who fail to uphold those values, like David Bruce, will be held accountable for their actions,” said James K. Cheng, Special Agent in Charge for the U.S. Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General’s Los Angeles Field Office.

MADERA RANCHOS - A newborn baby girl was found in the middle of Avenue 13 ½ near Road 36 in the Madera Ranchos early Monday morning. Valley Children’s Hospital officials believe the baby was only 6-8 hours old when found. The baby was found wearing just a onsie with no diaper and a blanket by a local newspaper carrier while he was on his route. The baby's umbilical cord was still attached.

The carrier immediately brought the baby to his car to try and warm her up then called 911. California Highway Patrol and paramedics were dispatched to the area where the child was found within minutes.  EMS transported the baby to VCH were she is reportedly in good condition despite being left in the freezing cold for around 30 minutes. The baby is now in the protective custody of the county of Madera's child protective services at VCH's neonatal intensive care unit.

FRESNO - A Fresno County Sheriff’s deputy has booked 27 year old Raquel Gonzalez of Fresno into the Fresno County Jail. She faces felony charges of child endangerment, evading police and a misdemeanor charge of driving under the influence (DUI). Around 2:00 am on Saturday, a Fresno County Sheriff’s deputy attempted to stop a suspected drunk driver at Highway 99 and Highway 180 in Fresno.

The driver, later identified as Raquel Gonzalez, refused to pull over and a pursuit ensued, with the suspect reaching a top speed of 70 mph. Gonzalez used the Chestnut off-ramp to exit Hwy. 180. She drove to a home on the 4700block of E. Thomas Ave. and stopped. Gonzalez got out of her car holding a three year old girl, later determined to be her niece. The deputy detained Gonzalez and had a California Highway Patrol officer respond to evaluate her for DUI. Gonzalez failed the sobriety tests and was arrested.

SACRAMENTO -  A 68-year-old retired Air Force master sergeant from Fairfield indicted in May of 2017 on federal child sex predator charges was sentenced Thursday to 17 years and eight months in prison for attempted online enticement of a minor, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced. According to court documents, in April 2017, Donald Threatt began conversing through the Kik Messenger mobile app with an individual who identified herself as “Sarah,” a 15-year-old girl who was interested in online games, soccer, and track.

Off and on over the course of many days, Threatt used Kik to tell “Sarah” the various sexual things he wanted to do to her. He discussed and agreed with the purported minor that he would visit her residence on Beale Air Force Base while her mother was away. According to the Kik chat, Threatt suggested blindfolding her and tying her up with rope. He stated that he would engage in various sexual acts with her and proposed that they take photos and a video of their sexual activity. Threatt arranged to meet her at her residence on May 12, 2017, after her mother had left for the weekend.

MADERA – Late Thursday evening the officers from the Madera Police Department shot and killed a driver who was wielding a knife following a traffic collision on the northbound exit to Freeway 99 at Cleveland Avenue. Officers were responding to a call of a suspected drunk driver traveling on the wrong side of the road on South Gateway Drive.

Madera Police dispatchers received a call around 10:00pm that the suspect was driving in an erratic manner. The caller stayed on the phone with dispatch as he followed the car onto Freeway 99 from the H Street entrance, through the city of Madera before the suspect crashed into a black car at the Cleveland exit on the north side of town.