California fire marshal suspends pyrotechnic licenses tied to deadly Esparto explosion
Those who had their licenses suspended were Devastating Pyrotechnics owner and CEO Kenneth Chee and Craig Cutright, owner of Blackstar Fireworks.
Cutright is also an Esparto Fire Department volunteer firefighter. BlackStar Fireworks and Devastating Pyrotechnics both had the same listed address, which was the site of the explosion.
Cal Fire's OSFM is leading the investigation to determine the origin and cause of the explosion that killed 7 workers at the facility in the Yolo County community of Esparto.
"While our Arson & Bomb Investigators have completed their evidence collection from the explosion site, the investigation remains very active," State Fire Marshal Chief Daniel Berlant said. "We continue to remain laser-focused on this investigation as the family and the community deserve answers. The effort to find the cause can take time, and it is our responsibility to ensure we provide a thorough and accurate investigation."
Chee's home in San Francisco was raided by law enforcement a week ago. State Fire Marshal Daniel Berlant sat down for a one-on-one interview with CBS Sacramento last week but did not say what investigators were searching for.
The search warrant served at Chee's home was one of "a number of search warrants carried out" in connection with the Esparto explosion, Berlant said.
Chee's attorney released a statement after that search stating that his client was innocent of any wrongdoing.
Cal Fire said it could not provide further specific details on the investigation.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Fox News
21 minutes ago
- Fox News
Dem mayor mocked for pushing ICE kidnapping story that ended up being alleged hoax
Los Angeles Democratic Mayor Karen Bass, a critic of President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown, is being mocked for pushing a story about an LA woman being kidnapped by ICE that ended up allegedly being an elaborate hoax. The Department of Homeland Security posted on its official X account on Friday, "Mayor, you pushed a HOAX. There is still time to delete this." This comes after Yuriana Julia Pelaez Calderon, a 41-year-old Mexican illegal alien living in Los Angeles, was charged with conspiracy and making false statements to federal officers, according to the DOJ. On July 1, Bass posted a link to a local news story about Calderon's supposed kidnapping, commenting, "She's a mother from L.A. — taken out of her car on her way to work, and then held in a warehouse as officers hoped she would 'self-deport.' "No hearing. Just fear," Bass added. "This doesn't make anyone safer." After the charges went public, DHS slammed Bass for her comments, saying, "Yuriana Julia Pelaez Calderon was NEVER arrested or kidnapped by ICE or bounty hunters—this criminal illegal alien scammed innocent Americans for money and diverted limited DHS resources from Los Angeles." RNC Research, a page run by the Republican National Committee, also chimed in, commenting on X that "Karen Bass spreads a false story demonizing ICE agents." According to the Justice Department, Calderon claimed to have been kidnapped by masked, uniformed men in unmarked cars at a Jack in the Box parking lot June 25. She claimed to have been forcibly taken to the border and presented to an ICE staffer who demanded she sign self-deportation papers. Calderon said that when she refused to sign the document, she was taken to a warehouse to be held indefinitely. The Los Angeles Police Department launched a missing person investigation and notified DHS, which, after determining Calderon was not in its custody, launched its own investigation. During the investigation, HSI noticed several irregularities, including that the phone calls to loved ones that Calderon had supposedly made via borrowed phones were made from her cell phone, intentionally masked to appear as an unknown number. According to the affidavit, video surveillance of Calderon's alleged forced abduction further showed her calmly leaving the Jack in the Box parking lot and getting into a nearby sedan. Despite the video showing a marked LAPD car in the vicinity, Calderon did not make any attempts to alert officers that she was in danger. The affidavit states that "when confronted with true information that contradicted their kidnapping story," Calderon and others lied to federal agents and "attempted to thwart law enforcement efforts" by keeping her whereabouts from law enforcement. According to a DOJ statement, HSI agents tracked Calderon down July 5 at a shopping plaza parking lot in Bakersfield, California. The statement said Calderon continued to claim she was taken by masked men and held in custody with others. Calderon's daughter also attempted to raise money from Calderon's alleged kidnapping by creating a GoFundMe page. A spokesperson for GoFundMe told Fox News Digital the page was removed and that the family did not access any of the money raised. Calderon is in U.S. immigration custody and is facing a maximum sentence of five years in federal prison for conspiracy and up to five years for false statements if convicted of the charges. Fox News Digital reached out to Bass' office for comment but did not receive a response before publication.
CBS News
an hour ago
- CBS News
Man out on bail arrested in Vallejo homicide investigation, police say
A suspect was arrested in connection with the Vallejo deadly shooting earlier this month, police said on Friday. In the early morning hours on July 5, police said they found a woman unconscious on the 400 block of Admiral Callaghan Lane. Medics arrived and found that she had been shot. She was then transported to the local hospital, where she later died, police said. Vallejo detectives identified the suspect as 42-year-old Jose Guadalupe Castillo of Vallejo, who police said was out on bail after he was arrested in early May for willfully discharging a firearm in a grossly negligent manner and for being a felon in possession of a firearm. Police found Castillo on Admiral Callaghan Lane after police said he walked into a convenience store to evade them, but officers were able to arrest him inside the store without further incident. They located a firearm with an extended magazine in the aisle where Castillo had been prior, police said. He was booked into jail for being a felon in possession of a firearm, police said. On Friday, Solano County prosecutors reviewed evidence, eventually charging Castillo with second-degree murder, shooting at an inhabited dwelling, being a felon in possession of a firearm and committing a felony while out on bail. Vallejo police said they were seeking information about a possible road rage incident that potentially occurred before the victim was found.
WIRED
an hour ago
- WIRED
Apple Sues the YouTuber Who Leaked iOS 26
In a lawsuit filed against prominent leaker Jon Prosser, Apple alleges a conspiracy to break into a development device and steal its trade secrets. Prosser insists Apple has it all wrong. iOS 26 is displayed on the Apple iPhone. Courtesy of Apple Leaks are a constant part of big product news cycles, particularly for companies like Apple. Online soothsayers like Jon Prosser and Bloomberg's Mark Gurman have long predicted the content of upcoming Apple announcements, citing anonymous sources from within the company to glean glimpses of what's next. They have been correct often enough to become a real pain for the Cupertino company. Now, Apple has seized upon an opportunity to fight back against leaks. In a complaint filed Thursday in US federal court for the Northern District of California, Apple is accusing prominent leaker Jon Prosser of allegedly scheming to 'break into an Apple development iPhone, steal Apple's trade secrets, and profit from the theft.' The suit alleges that, along with a coconspirator, Prosser, who makes videos on the YouTube channel Front Page Tech, deliberately took advantage of an Apple employee named Ethan Lipnik who had access to a developer iPhone running the as-of-yet unreleased software that would become iOS 26. The suit alleges that the other defendant, Michael Ramacciotti, who was staying at Lipnik's home at the time, waited for Lipnik to leave before accessing the development phone and showing details of the unreleased software to Prosser over a video call. Prosser then allegedly used information obtained in that early peek at iOS in videos that he posted on his YouTube channel well before Apple officially announced the updates. The suit also alleges that Ramacciotti claims Prosser masterminded the whole plan, promising Ramacciotti he would 'find out a way for [Mr. Ramacciotti] to get payment.' Prosser has denied any wrongdoing, and says the details of the suit are incorrect. In public posts on X, Prosser has maintained that this was not how things went down on his end. 'The details that Apple was given are just not accurate,' Prosser wrote to me via a direct message on X. 'I had no knowledge of how the info was obtained. He never told me he 'needed money' and I absolutely did not instruct him to act this out.' Prosser doesn't deny that he did reveal the information gleaned from Ramacciotti. He highlighted the details about the unreleased update in a series of videos earlier this year, including one in which he called the news, 'the biggest iOS leak ever.' Despite the question of how he actually acquired the information, the aftermath has been messy. Ethan Lipnik, the Apple employee who had the development phone that Ramacciotti is alleged to have accessed, was fired by the company. According to the complaint, Apple ended Lipnik's employment 'for failing to follow Apple's policies designed to protect its confidential information, including development devices and unreleased software and features.' Apple has not responded to requests for comment. Ethan Lipnik has also not responded to a request for comment. 'It's quite a significant lawsuit,' says Anshel Sag, principal analyst at the tech research firm Moor Insights & Strategy, in an email. 'But I also believe that there is quite a disparity between what Prosser is saying and what Apple alleges, especially since the employee seemed to not be aware of what was going on.' The biggest problem being alleged here, Sag says, is that while the data was taken from a development device that should have been better protected, how that data was acquired and where it came from should have been vetted before the details were put out into the world. 'Ultimately, every company fights leaks, especially Apple, but with this happening entirely in the US the company has a lot more power and laws to support its efforts,' Sag says. Many Apple leaks have historically come from sources outside the US, such as from within its manufacturing and supply chain partners in Asia. Because the complaint focuses on events that allegedly took place in California, Apple can argue in federal court that two US laws—the Defend Trade Secrets Act and the Computer Fraud And Abuse Act—have been violated. Prosser says he didn't even find out about the lawsuit until reading a MacRumors story about the filing. 'I feel awful that Ethan was terminated over this,' Prosser says. 'I wish he had shared with Apple what had occurred and I wish that Apple would have connected with me for more answers—I would have gladly chatted with them.'
