Category: CNN Regional

By S.E. Jenkins

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    MIAMI (WFOR) — The man who reported a woman missing last month, days before she was found dead in a Miami-Dade canal, is now charged with her murder, authorities say.

Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office deputies discovered the body of a woman, later identified as 37-year-old Nerida Martel, on Oct. 11 in a canal near SW 168 Street and SW 205 Avenue, prompting a homicide investigation.

Deputies were called to the area just before 4 p.m. after reports of a body floating in the water. When they arrived, deputies found Martel’s body and notified the MDSO Homicide Bureau, which took over the case.

Investigators said 40-year-old Saul Garcia Gonzalez reported his girlfriend, Martel, missing just days earlier. On Oct. 8, Garcia Gonzalez told the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office that he, Martel and their 2-year-old daughter live together, and that he had last seen Martel two days earlier. He said he had been unable to reach her on her cell phone.

As detectives looked deeper into the circumstances of her disappearance, they determined that “the victim had been murdered by the subject,” Garcia Gonzalez, the MDSO said.

A family friend told investigators that Garcia Gonzalez told them he dropped Martel off at a bus stop the morning of Oct. 6 so she could go to work; however, Martel’s employer told Garcia Gonzalez that Martel never arrived at work. The family friend said Garcia Gonzalez then said he thought Martel might be in the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. After discovering Martel was not in custody, the family friend told Garcia Gonzalez to report his girlfriend missing.

According to the family friend, Garcia Gonzalez told law enforcement that he last saw Martel at their home when he left to drop their daughter off at day care.

A friend of Martel’s told law enforcement that on Oct. 5, Martel had been looking for a place that she and her daughter could stay, which authorities said is an indicator she was “attempting to leave” and “end the relationship” with Garcia Gonzalez, the MDSO said. The investigator reported that Martel’s family members said Garcia Gonzalez was verbally abusive toward Martel.

During an Oct. 13 interview with a deputy, a K-9 unit also searched Garcia Gonzalez’ property. The K-9 handler said the cadaver dog had a “change in behavior on the exterior areas around the victim and the defendant’s apartment/living quarters,” the sheriff’s office said.

Investigators also discovered that on May 23, a 911 call was made from Martel’s phone. The comments on the call were a “hysterical female screaming for help on an open line with a child and a male heard yelling in the background” before the call was disconnected, authorities said.

Through further investigation, when Martel went missing, Garcia Gonzalez’ phone was tracked to and traveling around the canal more than once, and it never went to the bus stop where he claimed to have dropped off Martel, authorities said. Investigators also found video surveillance of Garcia Gonzalez’s car driving throughout the area of the canal.

On Wednesday, homicide detectives arrested Garcia Gonzalez and charged him with second-degree murder.

Miami-Dade SO said after Miranda rights, Garcia Gonzalez waived his rights to legal counsel and provided a statement denying having killed Martel.

This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting.

Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Riley Rourke

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    DOVER, New Hampshire (WBZ) — Surveillance video shows a man robbing a pizza restaurant in Dover, New Hampshire, at gunpoint on Wednesday evening.

It happened at Papa Jay’s Pizzeria on Broadway Street just after 7 p.m. Dover Police said that the suspect entered through a back door into the kitchen area before threatening the employees with the gun. Surveillance video shows the suspect instructing an employee to open the cash register and put all of the money into a bag, including the change from the drawer.

The suspect then leaves through the same door before heading north, according to police.

The suspect could also be seen smacking something out of an employee’s hand during the video. Police said that no one was hurt during the incident and no gunshots were fired. The amount of money taken is unknown.

Papa Jay’s Pizzeria took to Facebook after the incident, posting several surveillance video angles and asking for the public’s help in identifying the suspect. Police said that the video, once released to the public, “developed information leading them to arrest” 36-year-old Brice Charest from Dover. Charest was arrested at his home and charged with robbery. He is due in Dover District Court at 9 a.m. on Friday.

Anyone with any additional information about the robbery is asked to call Dover Police at 603-742-4646.

Dover, New Hampshire is located approximately 66 miles north of Boston. It is near the Maine and New Hampshire border. The city has a population of under 33,000.

This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting.

Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Anahita Jafary

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    TURLOCK, California (KCRA) — The sole survivor of a tragic crash in Turlock shares her journey of recovery and the loss of her family, highlighting the support she has received from loved ones and the community.

Emma Lourenco, 19, is working hard to walk her way back into a regular life.

“The goals that I have for the future kind of just involve going back to normal,” said Emma Lourenco, who is determined to regain a sense of normalcy after the accident.

Most things people take for granted, she diligently fought to regain.

“I can’t walk, for example, like I couldn’t walk at all. So I had to work up to that. Now I can,” she said. “December 15th was the day of the crash. I was in therapy from that day until like today, basically.”

She explained the challenges of relearning everyday tasks.

“Brushing your teeth, putting on your clothes, cooking all that stuff and then speech is obviously just talking, but also cognitive stuff. So it’s a little bit of both,” Lourenco said.

Last year, Lourenco and her family were driving to church when a speeding driver on Highway 165 crashed into their Jeep SUV. Her parents and the other driver died at the scene, while her brother and sister passed away shortly after. Lourenco survived after a week-long coma.

“I have no memory of the entire month of December or January,” Lourenco said, recounting the difficulty of processing the loss of her family.

She discovered the truth about the accident by searching online.

“I looked it up on Google, I looked up myself and I saw everything and that’s kind of how I found out,” she said. “My first thought was kind of like, they weren’t lying. It’s true. It did happen.”

Although her therapy has ended, Lourenco continues to face challenges in daily life.

“I would say it’s rough, but it does get better with time. I would say it definitely doesn’t heal. The loss is still there, but like your personal self will get better over time,” she said.

Lurenco plans to use her experience to help others, aspiring to become a physical therapist.

Throughout her recovery, the community has offered support.

“I was at the grocery store and a lady came up to me, and she was like, ‘I’m so grateful to see that you’re doing okay, that you’re healthy.’ And I was just—that kind of made my day,” Lourenco said.

Reflecting on the crash, Lourenco shared her biggest takeaway: “Just to be very grateful for everything that you do have and also very faithful.”

Lourenco says her grandparents, along with the rest of her family, have helped tremendously by supporting her and aiding her in her recovery. She has also turned to her faith in God and social media, like TikTok, as a form of therapy by sharing her story and answering questions for others experiencing grief and recovery.

This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting.

Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Michelle Bandur

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    ISLETON, California (KCRA) — The face of who you may imagine using cannabis is changing. It’s not just the younger crowd anymore, and the new users have more wrinkles.

More seniors are turning to cannabis for connection, fun and medical reasons.

Some seniors at the Trilogy retirement community in Rio Vista use cannabis for both recreational and medical purposes, with monthly trips to a nearby dispensary becoming a popular event. They’ve created a health and wellness group called “The 420 Club.”

On the 20th of every month, retired residents, ranging in age from 66 to 91, board the Delta Breeze bus for a trip to Isleton, which they affectionately call the “Cannabus.”

Jax Eubanks, owner of Delta Boyz Dispensary, looks forward to the monthly visits from the Rio Vista group. She said most of their customers are senior citizens.

“I wanted to offer something to the senior population, so I call it my ‘420 hour,’ my senior hour,” she said. Eubanks offers goodie bags and educational information to the group.

A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that marijuana use among Americans aged 65 and older increased by 46% between 2021 and 2023.

Tom Watson, 75, who founded the 420 Club, said he’s not surprised by the higher numbers.

“I like to get high every night, primarily for my insomnia. It helps me sleep,” he said. “But I’m not like your old typical hippie sitting around smoking a joint all the time.”

He said there are new products and club members want to learn and try new things, even in their older age.

“It’s all educational. We talk about the benefits of cannabis for any ailment you can think of,” Watson said.

Newest member Randi Hope didn’t start using marijuana until her 70s. She doesn’t want to smoke it.

“I bought two tinctures because I like tinctures,” she said. “I know exactly how much I’m getting.”

She enjoys the camaraderie and learning from the employees at the dispensary.

“You get to this age, everything hurts. It definitely helps with the pain,” Hope said.

Eubanks said the elderly are turning to alternative ways to treat their ailments.

“People use it for sleep, chronic pain, chronic disorders. We have people that have Parkinson’s disease that come to us, Alzheimer’s, dementia,” she said. “Those people really just need help because they’ve been failed by the traditional medical world.”

But some researchers are sounding the alarm.

Dr. Leila Mohammadi is a cardiologist and researcher at the University of California, San Francisco. She advises caution for older adults using cannabis.

Mohammadi recently published a study funded in part by the National Institutes of Health.

The three-year-long clinical study tested healthy 18 to 50-year-olds who smoked marijuana or ingested edibles three times a week.

Researchers discovered that long-term cannabis use is associated with vascular dysfunction.

“We were surprised to see how significantly these people have poorer vascular function compared to non-users, like ever users, basically,” Mohammadi said.

She warned that there are more consequences for the aging population using marijuana.

“This person is in higher risk of cardiovascular events, heart attack, stroke,” Mohammadi said. “Their vessels are already damaged.”

Back in Isleton, the 420 Club members enjoy the cannabis cafe at the Delta Boyz Dispensary.

“I only have to take two or three hits and I feel great,” Watson said.

Bob Ecker is the youngest member of the club at age 66.

“I think it’s wonderful that we can smoke and have fun, not hurt anybody and just enjoy it.”

Richie Goldstein helps organize the monthly trips and meetings.

“It’s kept me pretty young at 79,” he said.

He noted his first experience with cannabis was smoking a joint at a civil rights demonstration 60 years ago.

The UCSF study also found that eating THC edibles puts stress on the heart.

Mohammadi said they plan to focus their next study on seniors’ marijuana use, with the 420 Club members ready to participate.

This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting.

Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.