Latest news with #MarinCountySheriff'sOffice
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Yahoo
Burglar targeted unattended elementary school classrooms in search of credit cards, police say
He hung out in hallways and loitered on Northern California elementary school campuses, apparently unafraid of being noticed. When an administrator would question him, the man would say he was looking for a teacher or student to throw off the inquisitor. But, authorities allege, he was really in search of unattended purses and wallets belonging to unsuspecting staff members. The Marin County Sheriff's Office alleges Christopher Britton, of Fairfield, burglarized classrooms at several schools in February, making off with credit cards and running up thousands of dollars in unauthorized purchases. Britton, 34, was arrested Friday morning at a Fairfield residence by a multi-county task force that included the Vacaville, Lafayette and Danville police departments, Dublin Police Services and the sheriff's office. Britton was charged with burglary, second-degree burglary, and using a credit card and information without consent, all felonies, and a pair of misdemeanors for obtaining credit using someone else's identification, according to court records. Read more: Cal State Long Beach athletics staffers stole thousands from school, D.A. says "His MO was to target elementary schools in the late afternoon at the time students and staff are on campus, but in meetings or after-school programs,' said Deputy Stephanie Ware, a spokesperson for the Marin County Sheriff's Office. Ware said three public elementary schools in the upscale suburb of San Rafael were burglarized: Lucas Valley, Mary Silveira and Venetia Valley. From those schools, 10 teachers were bilked out of roughly $7,000 in credit card charges, Ware said. Authorities are not certain about the total number of schools that Britton may have hit, Ware said, adding that investigators suspect there are victims in Marin, Contra Costa and Alameda counties. The first incident was reported Feb. 12 at Mary Silveira. All three schools were hit in February. It is not clear how authorities connected Britton to the burglaries. Ware described Lucas Valley and Mary Silveira as 'pretty open campuses' that lacked gates that might discourage outsiders from wandering onto the premises. Read more: Burglars, vandals hit LAUSD 171 times since August, 'reprehensible' acts against poor schools Sheriff's officials allege that Britton would wait for assemblies or other activities to sneak into unlocked classrooms where teachers left personal items. He would limit the pilfering to one to two cards, authorities said, leaving cash and other valuables undisturbed to not arouse suspicion. Once away from campus, he would use the cards to purchase goods, authorities allege. Ware said some victims didn't realize they had been ripped off, in some cases for weeks, until they reached for a specific credit card or checked bank statements. 'People keep multiple credit cards, so it's not surprising,' Ware said. Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Yahoo
27-04-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Marin County conducts largest evacuation drill to prep for wildfires, earthquakes
MILL VALLEY, Calif.. - The largest evacuation drill in Marin County took place Saturday, preparing residents for emergencies like wildfires or earthquakes. Hundreds turned out to learn how to stay safe when every second counts. Cars lined up in Mill Valley near the intersection of Miller Avenue and Camino Alto to simulate a traffic backup and see how a real evacuation might unfold. Organizers said it was a Bay Area first. Local, county and state agencies partnered on a large-scale evacuation drill designed to evaluate response plans for emergencies such as wildfires, mudslides, earthquakes or floods. "This is something that we have been preparing for since the Oakland hills fire. We know that our geography here is such that it is very similar to Oakland. So we as a community and as a city, have been trying to prepare our community members," said Mill Valley Police Chief Rick Navarro. Officials encouraged residents to be ready with a go-bag, enough supplies for 72 hours for both people and pets, a fully fueled or charged vehicle, and a reunification plan with family. This year's Southern California wildfires, which broke out in similar terrain, served as a reminder to heed evacuation warnings immediately, know evacuation routes and plan ahead. "Many of our streets in our communities are very, very narrow and so for our fire apparatus, which are very wide, navigating some of these streets which are narrow is difficult, even if they don't have vehicles on them. But we make that more complicated obviously when there are vehicles either they're parked or people who are evacuating down those routes, so those are some of the challenges our people face in the field," said Chris Tubbs, chief of the Southern Marin Fire Protection District. First responders from multiple public safety agencies participated, including the Marin County Sheriff's Office, California Highway Patrol, Sausalito Police Department, and Southern Marin Fire District. A public safety fair followed the drill, where residents stopped by resource booths to pick up tips and emergency supplies. "I was born here, so there's really only two ways out. So it is interesting if there is to be something big happening you want to know how to get out," said Mill Valley resident Brett Gibbs. Gibbs and his family received their first emergency go-bag. "The town has made a lot of improvements in recent years and kind of planning out the best way to be evacuated, so we don't end up with people stuck up in the hills, which is where I live," said Erin McCauley. McCauley also resides in Mill Valley. "I think they've brought in a lot of people who kind of know the science to make your home fire safety ready, so not having bushes or certain types of plants too close to your house and make sure you seal up, so embers can't get in," she said. Officials also urged residents to sign up for Alert Marin, which sends critical emergency information by phone call, text and email.
Yahoo
20-04-2025
- Yahoo
Authorities searching for missing person in Marin Headlands
(KRON) — The Marin County Sheriff's Office, Marin Search and Rescue Team, the National Park Service and other agencies are searching for a 37-year-old man who is thought to have gone missing in the Marin Headlands on April 14. An abandoned car belonging to Wen Wu of Rohnert Park was found parked in the Battery Rathbone parking lot Tuesday. Authorities continue to search for Wu in the area. 'Marin [Search and Rescue] has provided 120 searchers between the two days,' Marin County Search and Rescue shared on social media Friday. 'Today we are working closely with the National Park Service, US Coast Guard, Stinson Beach Lifeguards, Sheriff's investigators and others.' Four teenagers dead, two injured in Marin County crash Wu is described as an Asian man with black hair and brown eyes. He is 5 feet 10 inches tall and weighs approximately 175 pounds. He was last seen wearing a dark blue T-shirt, dark blue pants and a gray jacket. Anyone with information about Wu's whereabouts is asked to contact the Marin County Sheriff's Office or the National Park Service. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Euronews
24-03-2025
- Euronews
DNA testing identifies California 'Jane Doe' after nearly 60 years
ADVERTISEMENT Almost six decades after a woman's body was found on a cliff in northern California, DNA testing has solved the mystery of her identity. Dorothy Jean Williams's body was discovered on 18 December 1966 on a cliff in Tiburon, near San Francisco, by a hunter who contacted the authorities. They were unable to identify Williams, who was estimated to be between 45 and 60 at her time of death, according to Othram, the forensic genetic genealogy company who says its services solved the cold case. Williams, who was described as wearing a red dress and an off-white trench coat and having red hair, was around 157cm tall and weighed about 47kg when her remains were discovered. Although they were unable to confirm her identity at the time, the authorities learned that a woman matching Williams's description had been seen at a fire station three months before her body was found, according to a local newspaper report from the time. She reportedly told staff that she was stranded without money for transport, and requested to sleep at the station. When the staff refused, she left. The autopsy placed her time of death around three months prior to the discovery of her body, which was said to be 'badly decomposed' by the time it was discovered, according to the archival news report clipping shared by Othram. Related DNA matches led to Golden State Killer Unidentified, she was known for decades only as the 'Marin County Jane Doe'. Now, thanks to the information revealed by genetic testing, we know that Williams, whose married name was Dorothy Jean Vaillancourt, was originally from Tasmania in Australia. "From the perspective of the family of this woman, she just disappeared and they may have thought they'd never know where she went, but now, almost 60 years later, they know the truth," said Kristen Mittelman, chief development officer for Othram. "It doesn't matter how old a case is, or whether it was hopeless in the past, there is technology here today that works, and it is able to give answers to a lot of families, like in this case." There had been several unsuccessful attempts to identify Williams, and her body had been entered into National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) as UP12018, according to the genetic testing company. The case was solved after the Marin County Sheriff's Office, working alongside the California Department of Justice, submitted evidence to Othram's lab, which assembled a DNA profile that linked Williams to her relatives. Euronews reached out to Marin County Sheriff's Office for comment. In recent years, investigative genetic genealogy has become an important tool in solving cold cases, using a combination of technology and genealogical research to reveal the identities of those involved in crimes, sometimes many decades old. The method grabbed headlines after it was used to identify Joseph DeAngelo as the Golden State Killer, leading to his arrest in 2018 . He was subsequently convicted and sentenced for 13 murders in 2020.
Yahoo
22-03-2025
- Yahoo
Marin County Jane Doe remains identified 60 years later
The Brief Remains of a woman found in 1966 in Tiburon have now been identified, nearly 60 years later Her identity was determined with the Othram Labs, the Marin County Sheriff's Office and the California Department of Justice TIBURON, Calif. - It was nearly 60 years ago when a body was found near a cliffside in Tiburon. For several decades her identity was unknown to those who found her and the authorities. However, Othram Labs, a Texas-based forensic laboratory that works with law enforcement, was able to positively identify the remains as Dorothy Jean Vaillancourt. The backstory On Dec. 19, 1966, a hunter came across the remains of a woman near Paradise Drive, according to the forensic lab. Authorities said the woman was between 45 and 60 years old, standing at 5 feet 2 inches, weighing around 105 pounds, and had auburn hair. At the time of her death, Vaillancourt was wearing a red cotton dress and an off-white trench coat. Authorities at the time tried unsuccessfully to identify the woman and the circumstances leading up to her death. The Marin County Sheriff's Office and the California Department of Justice (CA DOJ) collaborated with Othram to identify Jane Doe's remains. Local perspective The California DOJ said in May 2008, 17 years ago, the Marin County Sheriff's Office submitted a DNA sample to the state's Missing Persons DNA Program with the hopes that advancements in technology would yield a match. In 2022, the DOJ was contacted by Othram about their pilot program and requested cases where there were no other leads, the Marin County Sheriff's Office said. Eventually, Othram was able to get a familial match, and the Marin County Sheriff's Office Coroner's Division contacted the family, obtained a comparison sample, and confirmed the match through the DOJ, sheriff officials said. What we don't know It's unclear how Vaillancourt died. A report from DNA Solves said Vaillancourt didn't have enough money for a taxi ride home and sought shelter at a local fire station, but was turned away. Dig deeper Before she was positively identified, Vaillancourt's body was buried in Mt. Tamalpais Cemetery and Mortuary in San Rafael as she was presumed dead. The Source DNA Solves/Othram, Marin County Sheriff's Office, California Department of Justice
