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9 accused of running ‘sophisticated’ stolen car ring in Ventura County

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:10:09 GMT

Nine people have been arrested and are accused of running a “sophisticated” stolen car ring in Ventura County, officials announced Friday.Additionally, authorities seized 28 suspected stolen vehicle, more than $130,000 in cash, four handguns, a rifle and high-capacity magazines.Since last November, 16 Dodge Hellcat high-performance vehicles had been stolen in Ventura County, each worth more than $90,000, according to sheriff’s officials.Ten of the 16 stolen vehicles were recovered and detectives are working to recover the remaining six.During the investigation, Ventura County Sheriff’s Office detectives discovered that law enforcement agencies in San Bernardino County were also seeing stolen vehicles in their jurisdiction that followed a similar MO, and a person they believed was facilitating the stolen vehicles was also connected to the incidents in their region.On Wednesday, investigators from specialized local units, along with those from the Los Angeles Police Department served ...

Vibes star Simon Moullier returns to S.F., with his career on the right track

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:10:09 GMT

Simon Moullier was determined to give New York City one more chance.The French-born vibraphonist seemed to have everything required for a successful jazz career. After graduating from Berklee College of Music, where renowned trumpeter and professor Darren Barrett made him an essential part of several recording projects, Moullier earned a Master’s degree from the elite Thelonious Monk Institute in 2018 while studying with jazz legends Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter and Billy Childs.Most importantly, Moullier, 29, had developed a distinctive voice on his instrument, a rhythmically assertive and melodically charged approach that made him one of the most exciting young vibraphonists on the scene.But his phone didn’t ring. For two years.“I was putting in a lot of hours at home,” said Moullier, who moved back to Nantes in western France for the first 18 months of the pandemic. “I put in even more hours practicing in Nantes. When I came back to New York at the end of  2021 I was like, let’s...

Young love blooms among carnage in Berkeley Rep’s compelling ‘Let the Right One In’

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:10:09 GMT

Oskar is a lonely 12-year-old boy, viciously bullied at school every day of his life. His father leaves, his mother drinks and the teachers look the other way. He feels as isolated by them as he does wandering through the desolate forest of birch trees surrounding his town. It’s there that bodies are found, strung from branches like sides of beef, in “Let the Right One In.”Framed by Christine Jones’ macabre scenic design, these slayings intrigue Oskar (a magnetic Diego Lucano) almost as much as his new neighbor Eli (a beguiling Noah Lamanna), a lithe beauty who makes him shiver in more ways than one. Based on the exquisite 2008 Swedish movie of the same name, this hauntingly lovely National Theatre of Scotland production eschews cheap scares, instead tapping into a deep vein of existential dread in its West Coast premiere at Berkeley Rep.On its surface a coming-of-age story in the horror genre, closer to “Buffy” than “Twilight,” it’s also an unsettling meditation on our most element...

Pac-12 mailbag: No accountability for school presidents, the Power Five left-behinds, Cal’s fate, SDSU’s timeline and more

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:10:09 GMT

The Hotline mailbag is published every week. Send questions to [email protected] and include ‘mailbag’ in the subject line or hit me on Twitter: @WilnerHotline.Some questions have been edited for clarity and brevity.While former commissioner Larry Scott was either totally incompetent or a shrewd grifter, when are the Pac-12 presidents going to be held accountable for a lack of oversight that has put athletic departments into a financial swamp that continues to get deeper? — @RockDawg3If the Pac-12 were a publicly traded company, a shareholder revolt would be in order.The bumbling chief executive, Larry Scott, was effectively fired by the board in the winter of 2021. But the board itself has made a plethora of major mistakes and should, by all rights, be ousted.Unfortunately, there is no recourse for Pac-12 fans, members of the athletic departments and the athletes themselves — the three constituencies suffering from board-level mismanagement.Granted, many...

Subway owner who allegedly paid workers $265K in bounced checks hit with federal injunction

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:10:09 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- The owner and operator of several Subways who allegedly issued employees $265K in bad checks and violated child labor laws has been slapped with a preliminary federal court injunction. The injunction forbids John Michael Meza from violating child labor laws, threatening and retaliating against workers and obstructing a federal investigation, according to a news release from the U.S. Department of Labor. Old Navy closing down SF Market Street location Meza owns and operates 14 Subway franchise locations around the Bay Area. The injunction comes in the midst of allegations made by investigators with the DOL Wage and Hour Division. According to investigators, Meza instructed employees as young as 14 and 15 to operate dangerous equipment, allowed children to work longer hours at times not permitted by law, issued hundreds of bad checks to employees, failed to pay wages, and kept tips from customers.Meza also interfered with the investigation and coerced employe...

Five arrested, numerous firearms seized in SFPD bust

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:10:09 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- Five people were arrested for their involvement in an aggravated assault with a firearm incident, and numerous guns were seized, according to the San Francisco Police Department on Twitter. The assault occurred on May 15.Search warrants were served for:Kevon Greene-HubbardDavid GomezLazarus David-ReavisNicholas EakinZion DavisAll five were arrested for their involvement in the incident. Photographs accompanying the tweet showed several handguns, one assault-rifle-type weapon, and clips of ammunition, including what appeared to be extended clips.No further details on the nature of the assault were provided by SFPD.

Sonoma County sees 22% reduction in homelessness from last year

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:10:09 GMT

(BCN) -- Sonoma County is touting its annual 2023 Point-In-Time count of people experiencing homelessness, citing a 22 percent decline in overall homelessness and a 24 percent decline in people who had been designated "chronically" homeless from the previous year, the county said Wednesday. The Point-In-Time count, or PIT, was undertaken on a single day in January and was a census of sorts that counted the number of people in the county who were experiencing some level of homelessness at that time. 4 of wealthiest US counties are in Bay Area: study This year's count found 2,266 individuals experiencing homelessness compared to 2,893 in 2022. The county said that this is the largest decrease since 2015. Supervisor Chris Coursey said the new numbers were due to the "hard work" of entities in the county that have made it a goal to reduce homelessness, as well as Measure O, which was passed in 2020 and adds a quarter-cent sales tax to fund mental health and homelessness i...

Reds bullpen loses Hunter Greene’s no-hit bid vs Cubs in 8th inning

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:10:09 GMT

CHICAGO (AP) — Christopher Morel of the Chicago Cubs led off the eighth inning with a bloop single against reliever Eduardo Salazar, ending the Cincinnati Reds’ no-hit bid Friday that began with six dominant innings by Hunter Greene.Greene, winless in his first 10 starts, tied a career high with 11 strikeouts and walked two. The right-hander threw 110 pitches before handing off to Salazar, who retired all three batters in the seventh.Morel hit a soft line drive on Salazar’s first pitch of the eighth inning, and the ball easily dropped into center field.Chicago’s Nico Hoerner hit a fly to the left-field warning track in the sixth inning. But the Cubs hadn’t hit many balls hard. They trailed 7-0 after 7 1/2 innings.There have been 17 no-hitters by Cincinnati. The first was thrown by Charles “Bumpus” Jones on Oct. 15, 1892. The most recent one was on May 7, 2021, when 34-year-old Wade Miley threw a complete game against Cleveland, becoming the oldest pitcher in ...

Oklahoma ties DI record with 47th straight win, 9-2 over Clemson

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:10:09 GMT

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) — Haley Lee hit a grand slam, Cydney Sanders and Alyssa Brito each added a homer and top-ranked Oklahoma extended its winning streak to 47 with a 9-2 victory over Clemson in the opener of the Norman Super Regional on Friday.Oklahoma (55-1) tied Arizona’s all-time Division I record of 47 straight wins — set in 1997. The Sooners seek to break the record on Saturday in Game 2 of the best-of-three series with Clemson (49-11).Oklahoma had two fielding errors in the fifth inning as Clemson pulled within 4-2, but the Sooners broke it open in the bottom half with five straight hits, including a grand slam.Oklahoma’s 15th error of the season put runners on second and third with one out in the fifth. Caroline Jacobsen took advantage by hitting a two-run double down the line. Clemson loaded the bases after Oklahoma’s second error of the inning, but Jordy Bahl ended the threat with a strikeout and a soft liner to Tiare Jennings at second base.Oklahoma’s first three batters of...

Denny Stolz, former Michigan State football coach, dies at 89

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:10:09 GMT

EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Denny Stolz, who was named football coach of the year in four conferences, has died. He was 89.Michigan State announced Stolz died on Thursday. The family informed the school of his death, and no cause was given.Stolz was 126-92-2 over 21 seasons with the Spartans, Bowling Green, San Diego State and Alma College. He was the 1974 Big Ten coach of the year and was also named the top coach in the Mid-American Conference, Western Athletic Conference and Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association.The Greater Lansing Sports Hall of Famer played three sports at Mason High School and went on to play Division III football and baseball at Alma, where he later won 35 football games over six seasons as coach.Stolz was Michigan State’s defensive coordinator under College Football Hall of Fame coach Duffy Daugherty for his final two seasons before being promoted to coach and going 19-13-1 from 1973 to 1975.He went on to win 56 games over nine seasons at Bowling...