Irvine News Blog | Category Archives: Rancho Santa Margarita

DUI enforcement operations planned for this weekend in South O.C.

Posted on April 8, 2016 by Editor Posted in Alcohol, Crime, Lake Forest, Mission Viejo, News, Orange County Sheriff, Rancho Santa Margarita Leave a comment

Contacts: Lt. Mark Stichter, 714.904.7042, MKStichter@ocsd.org; Carrie Braun, 714.552.5795, CBraun@ocsd.org

DUI Enforcement Operations Planned this Weekend

SANTA ANA, CA (April 8, 2016) – Deputies from the Orange County Sheriff’s Department’s DUI Task Force will be deploying this weekend to stop and arrest alcohol and drug-impaired drivers in the department’s ongoing traffic safety campaign. DUI Saturation Patrols will deploy on Friday, April 8th at 7:00 p.m. and continue until Saturday, April 9th at 3:00 a.m. in the cities of Mission Viejo, Lake Forest and Rancho Santa Margarita.

“This is a ‘Zero Tolerance’ crackdown so Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over!” said Deputy Manuel Cruz from the Orange County Sheriff’s Department Traffic Bureau. Continue reading→

Man arrested for indecent exposure is back on the streets in Orange County

Posted on October 25, 2015 by Editor Posted in Crime, News, OCDA, Orange County Sheriff, Rancho Santa Margarita Leave a comment

Robert Bruce Engel

Robert Bruce Engel, a registered sex offender who indecently touched himself in front of teenage girls at a Rancho Santa Margarita Library is back on the streets this Friday after Orange County Superior Court Judge Craig Griffin ruled that he had already served his three year sentence in local jails, according to the O.C. Register.

This was Engel’s third conviction for indecent exposure.

Engel got in trouble in his latest incident way back on May 9, 2011, when he sat at a table at the Rancho Santa Margarita Public Library across from two teenage girls. Engels proceeded to fondle himself under a newspaper on his lap. The horrified girls notified a librarian, but Engel took off before the police officers arrived. A week later however Engeles was arrested when he unwisely returned to the same library. Continue reading→

The arrested O.C. bank robber “Snowbird Bandit” is a retired LAPD detective

Posted on July 23, 2015 by Editor Posted in Banks, Crime, News, Orange County, Orange County Sheriff, Rancho Santa Margarita Leave a comment

NEWS, FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contacts: Lt. Jeff Hallock, 714.904.7042, JHallock@ocsd.org; Emily Osterberg, 714.647.1840, EOsterberg@ocsd.org

Bank Robber “Snowbird Bandit” Arrested

RANCHO SANTA MARGARITA, Calif. – (July 23, 2015) – On Wednesday, July 22, 2015, Orange County Bank Robbery Apprehension Team (BRAT) investigators arrested Randolph Bruce Adair, 70, Rancho Santa Margarita, in connection with a series of robberies over that last several months in the south Orange County area. Continue reading→

Attorney sentenced to 4 years in prison after DUI crash that killed a bicyclist

Posted on June 22, 2015 by Editor Posted in Crime, News, OCDA, Rancho Santa Margarita Leave a comment

ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY PRESS RELEASE

Case # 15CF1119
13HF2830

Date: June 19, 2015

ATTORNEY SENTENCED TO FOUR YEARS IN PRISON FOR CRASHING CAR AND KILLING BICYCLIST WHILE DRIVING UNDER INFLUENCE OF PRESCRIPTION DRUGS

*Defendant was also convicted and sentenced to three years in jail for illegally possessing prescription drugs in jail

NEWPORT BEACH – An attorney was sentenced today to four years in prison for crashing her car and killing a bicyclist while driving under the influence of prescription drugs. Hasti Fakhrai-Bayrooti, 41, Rancho Santa Margarita, pleaded guilty March 10, 2015, to one felony count of vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated. She also pleaded guilty today to one felony count of possession of a controlled substance in a correctional facility and was sentenced to three years in jail to be served concurrently with today’s prison sentence.

Circumstances of Case #13HF2830 Continue reading→

Family files a government claim against the OC Sheriff’s Deputies who shot their son

Posted on June 16, 2015 by Editor Posted in Attorneys, Courts, News, Orange County Sheriff, Public Safety, Rancho Santa Margarita Leave a comment

GERAGOS & GERAGOS, A PROFESSIONAL CORPORATION

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 16, 2015

Contact: Mark Geragos/Ben Meiselas, Attorney for Family of Alec Ouzounian, 213.625.3900, Geragos@Geragos.Com

FAMILY OF POLICE SHOOTING VICTIM ALEC OUZOUNIAN FILES GOVERNMENT CLAIM AGAINST ORANGE COUNTY SHERIFF’S DEPUTIES

Mark Geragos, of Geragos & Geragos, APC has been retained by the family of Alec Ouzounian, who was wrongfully shot and killed by Orange County Sheriff’s Deputies in Rancho Santa Margarita on May 12, 2015.

Alec was shot and killed inside his home. Alec was unarmed and completely naked when he was shot as he exited a bathtub. Alec’s father Raffi Ouzounian called 9-1-1 when he grew concerned about his son’s mental health. Instead of pursuing a proper mental health extraction, Deputy Sheriff’s ordered Alec’s dad, Raffi, to lead them into his son’s home. When Alec emerged from the bathroom naked, Sheriff’s Deputies shot him twice in the heart. Raffi watched deputies kill his son and saw Alec’s body fall down the stairs before his feet. Continue reading→

Deputy-involved shooting in Rancho Santa Margarita

Posted on May 12, 2015 by Editor Posted in Crime, News, Orange County Sheriff, Rancho Santa Margarita Leave a comment

NEWS, FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contacts: Lt. Jeff Hallock, 714.904.7042, JHallock@ocsd.org; Emily Osterberg, 714.647.1840, EOsterberg@ocsd.org

Deputy-Involved Shooting

RANCHO SANTA MARGARITA, Calif. – (May12, 2015) – On Tuesday, May 12, 2015, a deputy-involved shooting occurred in the residence located at 28 Paseo Viento. The victim of the shooting, Alec Ouzounian, 40, Rancho Santa Margarita, was transported by paramedics to a local hospital where he was later pronounced dead.

At approximately 2:10 p.m., Orange County Sheriff’s deputies responded to 28 Paseo Viento regarding a subject attempting suicide. Deputies arrived and entered the residence where they confronted Ouzounian, suffering from multiple self-inflicted stab wounds. During the confrontation with Ouzounian, the deputy-involved shooting occurred. No deputies were injured during the incident. Continue reading→

Attorney convicted of DUI accident that killed a bicyclist in Lake Forest

Posted on March 10, 2015 by Editor Posted in Accidents, Drugs, News, OCDA, Rancho Santa Margarita Leave a comment

ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY PRESS RELEASE

Case # 13HF2830

Date: March 10, 2015

ATTORNEY CONVICTED OF CRASHING CAR AND KILLING BICYCLIST WHILE DRIVING UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF PRESCRIPTION DRUGS

NEWPORT BEACH – An attorney was convicted today of crashing her car into a bicyclist and killing him while driving under the influence of prescription drugs. Hasti Fakhrai-Bayrooti, 41, Rancho Santa Margarita, pleaded guilty today to one felony count of vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated. She faces a maximum sentence of four years in state prison. She is out of custody on $100,000 bail and is scheduled to be sentenced on May 8, 2015, at 8:30 a.m. in Department H-13, Harbor Justice Center, Newport Beach. Continue reading→

Additional charges filed against music teacher who targeted young girls

Posted on August 26, 2014 by Editor Posted in Crime, Irvine, Lake Forest, Mission Viejo, News, OCDA, Orange County Sheriff, Rancho Santa Margarita Leave a comment

Orange County District Attorney Press Release

For Immediate Release: August 22, 2014

Case# 14HF2171

ADDITIONAL CHARGES FILED AGAINST MUSIC TEACHER WHO COMMITTED LEWD ACTS UPON MULTIPLE FEMALE STUDENTS

*Law enforcement seeks public’s help identifying potential additional victims in this case

NEWPORT BEACH – Additional charges have been filed against a music teacher for committing lewd acts upon multiple female students during music lessons. John Mordecai Scott, 58, Lake Forest, was charged today for crimes against Jane Doe #5 with two felony counts of committing lewd acts upon a child under 14 and a sentencing enhancement for committing lewd acts on multiple victims.

Scott was previously charged for four victims with one felony count of continuous sexual abuse, four felony counts of committing lewd acts upon a child under 14, two felony counts of distributing pornography to a minor, one felony count of using a minor for sex acts, one felony count of possession and control of child pornography, four felony counts of committing lewd acts upon a child, one misdemeanor count of child annoyance, and a sentencing enhancement for obscene matter used during a sexual offense. Continue reading→

Attorney who killed a bicyclist charged with prescription drug DUI

Posted on October 21, 2013 by Editor Posted in Accidents, Crime, Drugs, News, OCDA, Orange County Sheriff, Rancho Santa Margarita Leave a comment

Orange County District Attorney Press Release

For Immediate Release, Case # 13HF2830: October 21, 2013

ATTORNEY TO BE ARRAIGNED FOR CRASHING CAR AND KILLING BICYCLIST WHILE DRIVING UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF PRESCRIPTION DRUGS

SANTA ANA – An attorney is scheduled to be arraigned tomorrow for crashing her car into a bicyclist and killing him while driving under the influence of prescription drugs. Hasti Fakhrai-Bayrooti, 39, Rancho Santa Margarita, is charged with one felony count of vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated. If convicted, she faces a maximum sentence of four years in state prison. She is out of custody on $100,000 bail and is scheduled to be arraigned tomorrow, Tuesday, Oct. 22, 2013, at 8:30 a.m. in Department C-55, Central Justice Center, Santa Ana. Continue reading→