News

FRESNO -  Four California agricultural companies and their owner have agreed to settle allegations that they violated the False Claims Act (FCA) and the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery and Enforcement Act (FIRREA) by knowingly submitting false information in support of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan applications, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

The companies, which grow, harvest, process, pack, ship, and sell processed and fresh tomatoes, among other crops, are Mendota Land Co., Sweetwood Farm Co. LLC, Sweetwood Farm Inc., and Seasholtz Co. LLC. The companies and their owner John Seasholtz (collectively, “Seasholtz”) are alleged to have improperly inflated the employee headcount on PPP loan applications by impermissibly including non-employee contract workers who were, in fact, employed by other, unrelated entities.

FRESNO COUNTY - Property crimes detectives with the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office have arrested 29-year-old Fernando Gonzalez of Parlier. He has been booked into the Fresno County Jail on nearly 20 felony charges, including multiple counts of robbery and being a felon in possession of a gun and ammunition. His bail is set at $845,000.

Shortly before 10:30 am on January 4th, deputies responded to an armed robbery at the EZ Stop Mini Mart located at 11024 S. Fowler Ave. in Selma. A masked man pointed a handgun at the clerk and took cash from the register. Deputies reviewed surveillance video and saw the suspect leave in a silver Honda Accord. The car’s license plate was legible thanks to a high-quality camera. The deputy provided the car’s license plate number to dispatchers, which was relayed to property crime detectives as they were responding to the store.

FRESNO  -  A federal grand jury returned a one-count indictment today against Emmanuelle Padilla, 26, of Fresno, charging him with being a felon in possession of ammunition, United States Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.  

According to court documents, Padilla was found in possession of ammunition on October 24, 2022. He has prior felony convictions for possessing controlled substances while armed and being a felon in possession of a firearm, and he is prohibited from possessing firearms and ammunition. 

FRESNO -  After 20 seasons at the helm, Mike Batesole is stepping down as head coach of the Fresno State baseball program.  Ryan Overland will serve as interim head coach for the 2023 season. Batesole, a two-time National Coach of the Year, guided the Diamond Dogs to the 2008 national championship by winning the College World Series at Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha.

By taking the Bulldogs from Underdogs to Wonderdogs, Batesole's squad claimed the school's first Division I national championship for any men's sport while capturing hearts across the nation.  His Bulldogs won seven-straight conference titles from 2006-12 and made six NCAA appearances in that time, advancing to the regional title game three times before winning the National Championship.

MADERA -  The Madera County Board of Supervisors held a special meeting today to discuss the imminent closure of the Madera Community Hospital. After hearing testimony from the state, federal, and local leaders, as well as comments from the community, the Board gave direction to staff on the following:

CHOWCHILLA – The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) has referred an investigation into former Central California Women’s Facility (CCWF) correctional officer Gregory Rodriguez to the Madera County District Attorney’s Office for charges of alleged sexual misconduct against incarcerated women.

In July 2022, CDCR’s Office of Internal Affairs (OIA) and CCWF Investigative Services Unit (ISU) immediately began investigating Rodriguez after discovering information that suggested sexual misconduct was occurring between Rodriguez and incarcerated women at CCWF.