Home Care In Piru, CA

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The owner and operator of a retail shop in Ventura County that sold California Fish and Wildlife hunting tags has pleaded guilty to federal charges in connection with a large-scale poaching ring.

Juventino Reyes Guerrero, 44, the operator of a Fish and Wildlife licensing desk located within Lizette’s Market in Piru, pleaded guilty to six felonies, including two counts of conspiracy and four counts of filing a false or forged document.

Guerrero played a key role in the alleged poaching ring, selling and reprinting illicit hunting tags to a group of hunters known as the “E-Bike Crew.”

From June 2019 to October 2021, six men allegedly falsified and reprinted hunting tags to allow them to skirt California hunting regulations and harvest more animals than legally allowed. The bulk of the illegal tags were sold at Lizette’s Market.

During that time period, members of the E-Bike Crew would purchase a tag at Guerrero’s store, Guerrero would then re-print the tags, blaming it on poor quality. In reality, he gave the men involved additional tags and received kickbacks for doing so.

Charging documents indicate Guerrero was printing and reprinting the tags under his stepdaughter’s name. When contacted, the stepdaughter told investigators she had no idea about the operation.

“The defendant abused the licensing systems and helped to orchestrate illegal killings of local wildlife,” said Erik Nasarenko, Ventura County District Attorney. “His actions endangered our environment, and as a consequence of his guilty plea, he will have a lifetime ban from issuing hunting tags and licenses.”

Each reprinted ticket is tracked through the state’s Automated License Data System. During the time that the alleged crimes took place, no licensed dealer in the state of California had more reprinted tickets than Lizette’s Market, authorities said. In total, every single reprinted ticket at Lizette’s Market could be traced back to the poaching crew.

Fish and Wildlife officials allege that the group was responsible for an undetermined number of illegal kills over the years and either simply didn’t report them or used fraudulent tags in an attempt to cover their tracks.

Throughout the duration that the alleged poaching crew was in operation, Fish and Wildlife were able to tie the group to dozens of deer that were taken illegally, as well as several black bears and at least one protected mountain lion, charging documents allege.

“This guilty plea is a testament to the intensive and thorough investigation on the part of our wildlife officers in combination with support from the Ventura District Attorney’s Office investigators and prosecutors,” said David Bess, Chief of the Law Enforcement Division and Deputy Director of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.

For his role in the plot, Guerrero is expected to face 180 days in the Ventura County Jail and a lifetime ban from operating state computers. The ban effectively disqualifies him from ever operating another Fish and Wildlife ticketing desk.

The six hunters also charged as part of the plot, identified as Martin M. Bravo, Martin Bravo Sr., Jaime Mendoza Avila, Walfre Lopez y Lopez, Gilberto Lopez Hernandez and Cristian Lopez Perez, are due in court on April 6.

By ANDREW DALTON | AP Entertainment Writer

Authorities said Thursday that they believe “Glee” star Naya Rivera, a Valencia native, a drowned in a Southern California lake but they are continuing the search for her a day after her 4-year-old son was found alone in a rented boat.

Multiple teams of professional search & rescue personnel are actively searching Lake Piru for clues to the location of Naya Rivera. With over 80 people involved in the search right now, we are using helicopters, boats, ATV vehicles, and ground personnel to try and locate her. pic.twitter.com/o2bN5sQFms

— Ventura Co. Sheriff (@VENTURASHERIFF) July 9, 2020

“Investigators believe Rivera drowned in what appears to be a tragic accident,” a Ventura County Sheriff’s Office statement said.

The boy, who was found asleep and wearing a life vest late Wednesday afternoon, told investigators that he and his mother went swimming and he got back on the boat, but “his mom never made it out of the water,” Sheriff’s Sgt. Kevin Donoghue said.

Surveillance video taken at about 1 p.m. Wednesday shows Rivera and the boy leaving on the boat at Lake Piru, something she had done before.

“She had experience boating out here at the lake,” Donoghue said.

The boy was discovered by the vendor who rented the boat to the pair. Rivera’s identification and an adult life vest were on the boat, and her car was found in a parking area, Donoghue said.

Rivera played a singing cheerleader in the musical-comedy “Glee” that aired from 2009 until 2015.

Rivera was born in Valencia and grew up in the city, graduating from Valencia High in 2005.

She got her show-business start at a young age, appearing in commercials for Kmart as a child. At age 4, she appeared in the TV series “The Royal Family,” starring comedian Redd Foxx. Her parents are Yolanda, a former model and a former executive assistant at the Los Angeles Daily News, and George Rivera.

She made her movie debut in the horror film “At the Devil’s Door” in 2014. She also dabbled in music, releasing single in 2013, “Sorry”, with rapper Big Sean, on Columbia Records. She also had a recurring role on the Lifetime series “Devious Maids.”

But it was on Fox’s “Glee,” that she made her mark, appearing in 113 episodes of the series as Santana Lopez.

It appeared increasingly likely she would become the third major cast member from the show to die in their 30s.

Co-star Mark Salling, who Rivera dated at one point, killed himself in 2018 at age 35 after pleading guilty to child pornography charges.

Cory Monteith, one of the show’s leads, died at 31 in 2013 from a toxic mix of alcohol and heroin.

In a news conference more than 24 hours after Rivera and her son had set out, Donoghue said that the effort at Lake Piru had shifted from an attempt to rescue the 33-year-old to an attempt to recover her body.

Dozens of people, most of them divers, with help from helicopters, drones and all-terrain vehicles were involved in the search on Lake Piru, 55 miles (90 kilometers) northwest of Los Angeles in the Los Padres National Forest.

In the area where the boat was found, the water was about 30 feet (9 meters) deep, authorities said.

Murky waters heavy with vegetation made it difficult for divers to see more than about a foot ahead of them.

“In the lake, the visibility is terrible,” Donoghue said.

He said the plants proving challenging for divers may have been a problem for Rivera herself.

“If the body is entangled on something beneath the water, it may never come back up,” Donoghue said.

There have been occasional drownings through the years in the popular recreation area of the lake, which is about an hour’s drive from downtown LA. It was shut down Thursday for the search.

Fire department helicopters hovered over the water on a sunny afternoon in the search’s second day, and boats of several sizes could be seen skimming the water, the smaller ones searching up creeks and tributaries.

The search was to continue into the night.

just the two of us pic.twitter.com/wCunAlGJ1B

— Naya Rivera (@NayaRivera) July 7, 2020

The boy, Rivera’s son from her marriage to actor Ryan Dorsey, was safe and healthy and with family members, authorities said. The couple finalized their divorce in June 2018 after nearly four years of marriage.

She called the boy, her only child, “my greatest success, and I will never do any better than him” in her 2016 memoir “Sorry Not Sorry.”

The most recent tweet on Rivera’s account, from Tuesday, read “just the two of us” along with a photo of her and her son.

Rivera had been boating with her 4-year-old son at the lake Wednesday afternoon when she went missing.

(NBC News) — Actress Naya Rivera was found dead at Lake Piru, five days after she went missing during a boating trip with her son, the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office said Monday.

A body recovered in the lake Monday morning was identified as Rivera, the sheriff’s office confirmed during an afternoon press conference. An autopsy has not been conducted, but authorities have previously said they presume Rivera drowned in the lake.

Rivera, 33, was boating with her 4-year-old son Wednesday afternoon when she went missing. The boy was found asleep and wearing a life vest late Wednesday afternoon and told investigators that he and his mother went swimming and he got back on the boat, but Rivera did not.

The sheriff’s office has said Rivera and her son were the only people on the boat she had rented when it went out on the water.

In the area where the boat was found, the water was about 30 feet deep, authorities said. Visibility in the water during the day was about eight to 10 inches and there was lots of debris and full-size trees under the water and “varying depths.”

On Thursday, the sheriff’s office said it was presuming that Rivera drowned in the lake. Deputy Chris Dyer said there were no signs of foul play or anything that went wrong “besides a tragic accident.”

Several agencies have assisted in the search on Lake Piru, about 50 miles northwest of Los Angeles, the sheriff’s office said.

Rivera married actor Ryan Dorsey in 2014. She gave birth to their son, Josey Hollis, in 2015. The couple finalized their divorce n 2018.

Rivera starred in six seasons of the Fox series “Glee” as cheerleader Santana Lopez. If her death is confirmed, Rivera would become the third major cast member from “Glee” to die in their 30s.

Cory Monteith, who played Finn Hudson, died at 31 in 2013 from a toxic mix of alcohol and heroin.

Mark Salling, who played Noah Puckerman, died in what appeared to be a suicide in 2018 at 35 after pleading guilty to child pornography charges. Rivera and Salling had dated at one point.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

Read the full story on NBC News.

Firefighters battled a fast-growing brush fire into the night near Lake Piru on Saturday.

The fire was reported at 5:12 p.m. in a remote area on the north end of Lake Piru north of the Blue Point campground.

Several units including water tenders, bulldozers, helicopters, ground units and others responded. Air tankers helped combat the flames but left at nightfall due to visibility issues. Assistance was requested from nearby Los Angeles County, and crews from Los Padres National Forest and Cal Fire also responded.

Drought and wildfire dangers:

Los Padres was handling command of the battle against the blaze, according to the Ventura County Fire Department.

Dubbed the Canyon Fire by responding authorities, it was the first major vegetation blaze of the peak fire season in Ventura County.

Its cause was unknown.

Sunday update:Firefighters tame blaze north of Lake Piru

When crews arrived soon after the fire was reported, they said it was an estimated 25 acres with potential to reach 100 or more. By 6:30 p.m., it was reported to be 75 acres with three separate main points of flame.

The fire was burning uphill in a mountainous area near the Sespe Wilderness, a region of Los Padres National Forest with major burn areas during the Thomas Fire late last year.

Several structures were nearby but not threatened, crews said.

Evacuations were ordered for the cabins at the Blue Point campground but they were later called off, as the fire was heading in the opposite direction, according to the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office.

As crews battled the flames Saturday, the National Weather Service reported that southeast winds were gusting to 14 to 17 mph at the scene and relative humidity was near 47 to 53 percent with the temperature in the 70s. Sunday’s forecast for the area called for low clouds and fog with drizzle in the morning, followed by sunny and clear skies with temperatures peaking in the mid-80s.

The fire comes on the heels of warnings from officials about extremely dry local conditions and the dangers they bring.

“Now, we enter into the seventh year of a severe drought,” Mark Lorenzen, chief of the Ventura County Fire Department, said in May as his agency shared strategies for addressing the upcoming peak fire season. “It hasn’t changed; it’s getting worse.”

He warned: “These wildfires are growing more significant, and our fire season is basically the entire year.”

Earlier this month, Adam Allgood, a meteorologist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Climate Prediction Center, added to the warning, saying the drought would persist.

“Grass has cured on all but the shaded slopes and the fuels are becoming more and more receptive to burning every day,” wrote Ventura County Fire Department Capt. Kenneth VanWig in a recent update about brush conditions as a map from the U.S. Drought Monitor showed nearly all of Ventura County in severe drought.

“We have large amounts ... of wildland fuels that are just ready to ignite and burn again with the same ferocity that they did during the Thomas Fire,” Lorenzen said in May.

Including material reported by staff writers Christian Martinez and Cheri Carlson.

More local public safety news:

How many drowning deaths have occurred at California's Lake Piru? Unfortunately, it's not uncommon, but hopefully, Naya Rivera will be found safely.

On Wednesday, July 8, Glee actress Naya Rivera was deemed missing after embarking on a casual boat ride in a pontoon through Southern California's Lake Piru with her 4-year-old son, Josey. According to CNN, three hours after they left the dock, another boater discovered their boat drifting, with the child sleeping safely inside. Sadly, Naya was nowhere to be found, and many have started to wonder if she drowned.

Unfortunately, several deaths by drowning have occurred at Lake Piru. Here's what we know about the dangerous (yet seriously popular) outdoor destination.

What is the death toll by drowning at Lake Piru?

Although Lake Piru is an incredibly popular destination for Los Angeles residents, it doesn't seem to be the safest place for outdoor recreation. According to Los Angeles Times, about seven people drowned in the lake between 1994 and 2000. Although there are generally several lifeguards on duty, as well as rangers, the current can be strong, making it difficult for experienced and non-experienced swimmers alike.

In 2000, park officials determined that strong winds, chilly waters, and the 160-foot depth is often to blame for drowning swimmers. They also noted that a vast majority of drowning victims had been swimming in "restricted waters."

“The only thing I can emphasize is that if swimmers are around water, they need to wear a personal flotation device whether they know how to swim or not,” said Douglas West, a parks and recreation manager at the time. "That will save their lives.”

Officials believe Naya may have drowned because she went swimming without a life jacket. According to Mirror, Naya jumped off the boat, and reportedly "never came back up." When her son was discovered, he was wearing a child's life jacket, and next to him was an adult-sized life jacket. This has led officials to assume Naya went swimming without wearing her recommended safety device, which could have been a potentially fatal decision in the unpredictable Lake Piru.

What is happening with Naya Rivera's investigation?

Currently, Josey is staying with his extended family, until divers and authorities (hopefully) find the missing 33-year-old actress and singer. On the night of July 8, divers officially called off the search to continue in daylight.

In a press conference, according to The Sun, Ventura's Sheriffs are continuing the search for Naya, with the assistance of Ventura County Sheriff Search and Rescue, Ventura County Fire, Los Angeles County Dive Operations, Ventura County Aviation, and drones. They are searching the water and shoreline, and the lake is closed to the public for the search that may continue for "several days." We're certainly hoping for the best here.

We're hoping that Naya is found alive and well so she can be reunited with her friends, family, and son Josey. Clearly, Lake Piru is a somewhat dangerous destination for outdoor activities, so if you ultimately decide to visit, please wear a life jacket.

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