Ventura County
Articles
Latest Ventura County stories — newest first.
Local NewsAug 20, 20263 minVentura County Board of Supervisors Unanimously Approves Renaming Ventura Family Justice Center in Honor of the Late Judge Colleen Toy White
The Ventura County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously on Thursday, August 20, 2026, to rename the Ventura County Family Justice Center as the Judge Colleen Toy White Family Justice Center. The dedication honors the late Superior Court Judge and former Chief Assistant District Attorney whose 41-year public service career pioneered specialty courts, self-help legal clinics, and comprehensive trauma-informed victim advocacy programs across Ventura County.
Lana J. Yang
CrimeAug 20, 20263 minFour Santa Paula Men Arrested in $1 Million Combined Bail Copper Wire Theft Ring That Disrupts Cell Service
Santa Paula Police Department officers and detectives arrested four local men after uncovering over 600 feet of stolen copper wire inside a motel room on East Harvard Boulevard. The suspect group—Anthony Ayala, Richard Romero, Raymond Leon, and Mathew Mueller—targeted critical telecommunications infrastructure, causing service outages for local residents, businesses, and a cellular tower before officers recovered the stolen wiring.
Lana J. Yang
CrimeAug 20, 20264 minThree Los Angeles-Area Men Arrested in Targeted Camarillo 'Bank Jugging' Scheme
Patrol deputies and detectives with the Camarillo Police Station arrested three Los Angeles County men on Tuesday afternoon, August 18, 2026, following a coordinated "bank jugging" theft in the 2200 block of Via Leal. The suspects—Tyson Hinton, Quawun Williams, and Malcolm Lockhard—surveilled an elderly victim from a bank, followed him home, and opened his vehicle door in his driveway to steal a large sum of cash before deputies intercepted their getaway vehicle on U.S. 101.
Lana J. Yang
CRIMEAug 20, 20263 minOxnard Man Arrested After Brandishing Loaded Firearm and High-Capacity Magazine on West Esplanade Drive
Oxnard Police Department officers arrested 29-year-old Oxnard resident Humberto Carrillo on Wednesday afternoon following reports that he brandished a firearm in a commercial area on West Esplanade Drive. Responding officers contacted Carrillo inside a parked vehicle, safely detaining him and seizing a loaded handgun equipped with an illegal high-capacity magazine.
Lana J. Yang
Public SafetyAug 19, 20263 minSimi Valley Police Release Footage of Hospital Officer-Involved Shooting at Los Robles Medical Center
In accordance with California Assembly Bill 748, the Simi Valley Police Department released critical incident video footage on Wednesday, August 19, 2026, documenting a July 2 officer-involved shooting inside Los Robles Regional Medical Center in Thousand Oaks. The released footage captures the moment an officer monitoring attempted murder suspect Luis Santiago Ramirez-Macias called for medical assistance before a violent altercation occurred inside a hospital room. The Ventura County Sheriff's Office continues to lead the independent investigation.
Lana J. Yang
GeneralAug 19, 20263 minFather and Son Arrested in Santa Paula Child Molestation Investigation
Santa Paula Police Department detectives arrested an 80-year-old man and his 49-year-old son following an extensive investigation into multi-year child sexual abuse. Ramon Godinez Sr. and Ramon Godinez Jr. were taken into custody on Saturday, August 1, 2026, and are being held without bail at the Ventura County Pre-Trial Detention Facility on multiple felony counts involving three minor female victims.
Lana J. Yang
Public SafetyAug 19, 20264 minRapid ALPR Alert in Camarillo Leads to Stolen Vehicle Recovery and Arrest
An Automated License Plate Reader (ALPR) alert processed by the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office Advanced Real Time Information Center (ARTIC) led to the quick arrest of Anallely Vega in Camarillo on Thursday morning, August 13, 2026. Within one minute of the dispatcher confirming the stolen vehicle hit, patrol deputies located Vega near Las Posas Road and Ponderosa Drive, taking her into custody on felony charges.
Lana J. Yang
Local NewsAug 19, 20264 minImpaired Santa Paula Driver Arrested After Head-On Collision with CHP Patrol Vehicle in Grimes Canyon
A California Highway Patrol officer and a female passenger sustained major injuries late Saturday night after an impaired driver crossed double yellow lines and struck a CHP patrol cruiser head-on in Grimes Canyon. The California Highway Patrol arrested 34-year-old Derek Skinner of Santa Paula at the scene for felony driving under the influence causing bodily injury following the two-vehicle collision on Grimes Canyon Road.
Lana J. Yang
Public SafetyAug 19, 20263 minCity of Simi Valley to Pay $230,000 Settlement Following Sexual Harassment, Retaliation, and Disability Discrimination Complaint
The City of Simi Valley has agreed to pay $230,000 to resolve a formal employment complaint handled by the California Civil Rights Department (CRD). The complaint alleged that a municipal employee was subjected to sexual harassment, retaliated against after reporting her supervisor, and unlawfully denied a reasonable accommodation for a disability. In addition to financial compensation, the settlement mandates civil rights training and state compliance monitoring.
Lana J. Yang
local-newsAug 18, 20264 minMorning Structure Fire Damages Camarillo Duplex, Displaces Four Adults and Claims Family Pet
Firefighters from the Ventura County Fire Department, supported by Sheriff's deputies, responded to a working residential structure fire in the 5300 block of Heather Street in Camarillo on Tuesday morning. Crews launched an aggressive interior attack, successfully confining the flames to a single bedroom and preventing extension into an adjacent duplex unit. While all human residents safely evacuated without injury, four adults were displaced, and one family dog died in the incident.
Lana J. Yang
CRIMEAug 18, 20264 minKnown Colonia Chiques Gang Member Sentenced to 10 Years in Federal Prison for Meth Trafficking and Machine Gun Possession
Rodolfo "Creature" Hernandez, 36, a documented member of Oxnard’s Colonia Chiques street gang, was sentenced in Los Angeles federal court to 10 years in federal prison on Monday, August 17, 2026. Hernandez was convicted of possessing nearly 100 grams of methamphetamine for sale alongside multiple firearms, including a converted .380 caliber machine gun, following a joint investigation by the FBI and Oxnard Police Department.
Lana J. Yang
Local NewsAug 18, 20264 minRed Cross LA Expands Service Region to Four Southern California Counties
Red Cross LA is expanding its service region beyond Los Angeles County to include Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties, increasing its reach to more than 10 million people across 88 cities.
Kristian Thorne
CRIMEAug 18, 20264 minIncarcerated Moorpark Man Charged with Attempting to Dissuade Witnesses in Simi Valley Child Molestation Case
Anthony Perez, 50, an incarcerated defendant facing felony child molestation charges, was supplementally arrested and charged with two felony counts of witness intimidation and witness dissuasion on Wednesday, August 12, 2026. A multi-agency investigation involving Moorpark detectives, the Sheriff’s Major Crimes Bureau, and District Attorney investigators revealed Perez coordinated from his Ventura County jail cell with outside associates in Simi Valley and Moorpark to threaten witnesses and stop them from testifying.
Lana J. Yang
CRIMEAug 17, 20263 minPatrol Officers and K9 Torque Seize Over One-Third Pound of Methamphetamine in Ventura Garage Bust
Ventura Police Department patrol officers Nick Gendreau, Joseph Morales, and Brent Stronge, alongside K9 Torque, intercepted a significant narcotics stash during a routine patrol on Saturday, August 15, 2026. After spotting a known drug dealer in an open garage with visible drug paraphernalia, K9 Torque alerted officers to a backpack containing 176 grams of methamphetamine, leading to the suspect's arrest for drug sales.
Lana J. Yang
Public Safety & Law EnforcementAug 17, 20264 minStolen Car Recovered in Camarillo Within One Minute of ALPR Alert
Automated License Plate Reader technology allowed Ventura County Sheriff's deputies to locate and recover a stolen vehicle near Las Posas Road in Camarillo, arresting driver Anallely Vega just sixty seconds after the initial dispatch alert.
Casey Hayes
Local NewsAug 17, 20264 minCamp HOPE Delivers Week of Healing and Support for Sixty Ventura County Child Crime Victims
Sixty children and teenagers from across Ventura County gathered at Camp Daley in Calabasas for Camp HOPE, an annual six-day trauma-informed summer camp provided free of charge through the Ventura County District Attorney's Office and the Family Justice Center Foundation. Designed to support child victims and witnesses of crime, the program provided youth with therapeutic outdoor activities, positive mentorship, and a safe environment to heal, build lasting friendships, and build resilience.
Lana J. Yang
Public SafetyAug 17, 20264 minPedestrian Critically Injured in Early-Morning Collision on Oxnard Boulevard
A 40-year-old Oxnard man is in critical condition at Ventura County Medical Center after being struck by a vehicle early Sunday morning at the intersection of Oxnard Boulevard and Ninth Street. Oxnard Police Department patrol officers and paramedics rendered emergency lifesaving measures at the scene. The 65-year-old driver of a 2001 Toyota Camry remained on site and cooperated with traffic investigators, who do not suspect alcohol or drug impairment.
Lana J. Yang
CRIMEAug 17, 20264 minDriver Sentenced to Over Five Years in Prison After 124 MPH Double-Fatal Highway 101 Crash in Newbury Park
Pico Rivera resident Leonardo Abel Rodriguez, 21, was sentenced on August 13, 2026, to five years and four months in state prison for a high-speed Halloween 2024 collision on U.S. 101 in Newbury Park. Rodriguez pleaded guilty to two felony counts of gross vehicular manslaughter after traveling 124 miles per hour and attempting to pass traffic on the freeway shoulder, slamming into a parked semi-truck and killing passengers Serenity Rizkalla and Michael Estrella.
Lana J. Yang
CRIMEAug 17, 20263 minVentura Chiropractor Sentenced to Six Years in Prison for Sexual Battery of Patients
Fernando Juarez Gomez Jr., 45, owner of the now-closed Limitless Functional Therapy clinic in Ventura, has been sentenced to six years in state prison following his conviction on five felony counts of sexual battery against female patients. Ventura County prosecutors established that Gomez abused his position of trust as a healthcare provider to sexually assault multiple women during appointment sessions between 2022 and 2024.
Lana J. Yang
Public SafetyAug 14, 20264 minOpen Space Enforcement Operation in Arroyo Conejo Leads to Three Arrests, Narcotics Seizure, and Stolen Property Recovery
A joint enforcement and environmental remediation operation conducted by the Thousand Oaks Directed Enforcement Unit and Conejo Open Space Conservation Agency rangers in the Arroyo Conejo Open Space resulted in the arrest of three Thousand Oaks residents on Tuesday, August 11, 2026. Authorities seized methamphetamine packaged for sale, recovered a stolen bicycle, and cleared multiple illegal encampments adjacent to Rancho Conejo Playfields.
Lana J. Yang