A vigil was held Wednesday for a 64-year-old man who was killed in a hit-and-run crash in Hemet the day before.

Friends and family members of Danny Silva gathered near the scene of where he was killed a day before on March 8, 2017. (Credit: KTLA)

The crash occurred about 6:20 p.m. Tuesday near the intersection of Florida Avenue and Mayflower Street.

The victim, identified by family members as Danny Silva, was walking along Florida Avenue when he was struck by a white SUV. The driver did not stop after the crash. He died about 20 minutes later.

Family and friends gathered at the scene told KTLA that Silva lived about a block away and had two adult children. He was a retired house painter.

"My heart is in pain," the victim's brother Silvia Perez said. "My brother was a good man."

Silva's cousin, Ofelia Saldana, said his family wants the driver to come forward.

"He was a human person and you just don't hurt people like that," she said.

Anyone with information about the crash can call the Hemet Police Department at 951-765-2400.

A 21-year-old Hemet man was arrested on suspicion of impersonating a police officer after he tried to pull over a sheriff’s deputy on Tuesday, authorities said.

Johnnie Sellers is shown in a photo provided March 15, 2017, by the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department.

Johnnie Issa Sellers was arrested Tuesday night by the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department.

About 12:30 p.m. Tuesday, a sheriff’s deputy, whose gender was not given, was driving a personally owned vehicle in the Murrieta area when a white Dodge Dart pulled up behind, the Sheriff’s Department said in a news release.

The Dart had “emergency lights” and a siren activated, including two flashing lights in the upper windshield area, the deputy said. An “audible police-style siren” was also used by the Dart.

The deputy did not pull over and instead contacted the Riverside County sheriff’s dispatch center. The Dart passed the deputy’s car and drove on, but the deputy took a photo of the car and its license plate.

After an investigation, the car was found in Hemet with LED light strips in the upper windshield area and a public address system installed, the Sheriff’s Department said.

Sellers, the vehicle’s registered owner, was arrested on suspicion of misdemeanor impersonating a police officer.

He is due in court May 5.

Hemet police are investigating on Wednesday after a 7-month-old baby girl went into cardiac arrest at a daycare and later died.

Officers were called to a home in the 1200 block of Stepstone Court around 8 a.m. Monday with reports of an unresponsive 7-month-old girl. There, they found Addison Watkins and began life saving measures.

Addison was transported to a local hospital where she was pronounced dead, according to the Hemet Police Department.

Her mother, Kristin Watkins, dropped off Addison and her brother, 3-year-old Nolan Watkins, that morning around 7 a.m., a family friend said on a GoFundMe page.

Addison Watkins is shown in a family photo from a GoFundMe page.

Kristin Watkins learned her daughter was in full cardiac arrest around 8:30 a.m. and rushed to the hospital with her husband, Steve Watkins, according to the friend, Darnisha Tossell.

By the time the couple arrived at the hospital Addison was already pronounced dead, Tossell said.

Addison showed no obvious signs of trauma, police said in a press release.

The Watkins family have been using the residence as a daycare since Nolan was 6-months-old, according to the family. The babysitter was not a family member, Tossell added.

Hemet police are working with Riverside Child Protective Services to determine any licensing issues with the daycare.

The family is accepting donations for funeral expenses on the GoFundMe page.

A 46-year-old woman was with her ex-husband on Wednesday when she called her daughter to tell her she was worried for her safety, Hemet deputies said.

Kenneth Biggs, left, and Stephanie Hartzler are seen in photos released May 3, 2017, by the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department.

Stephanie Hartzler was classified as an at-risk missing person after the Hemet resident’s adult daughter reported the situation around 10:50 a.m., the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department said in statement.

Hartzler’s ex-husband is 37-year-old Hemet resident Kenneth Biggs, deputies said.

Hartzler allegedly told her daughter she was in danger and asked her to come find her.

Stephanie Hartzler’s Honda Accord is seen in photos released May 3, 2017, by the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department.

She was last seen in the Hemet area inside her white 2009 Honda Accord with California license plate No. 6GIC627.

Authorities searched the area extensively but were unable to find the two, officials said.

If you have any information their whereabouts, call 911.

Three juveniles traveling in a stolen vehicle during a police pursuit were hospitalized Wednesday morning after the driver lost control of the car and crashed into a tree in Hemet.

Three teens were injured following a stolen vehicle pursuit in Hemet on May 10, 2017. (Credit: KTLA)

A blue Hyundai reported stolen just before midnight was spotted a short time later by officers in the 400 block of East Oakland Avenue, Hemet Police Department Lt. Eric Dickson said.

The driver fled from police and a pursuit was initiated, Dickson said.

A little over a mile away, the driver lost control of the vehicle and crashed in the 200 block of Columbia Street.

Video showed the badly damaged vehicle had struck a tree and came to a rest on the front lawn of one of the homes in the neighborhood.

All three occupants were injured in the crash and were hospitalized, Dickson said.

Two of the injured were listed in critical condition and the third person was in stable condition, Dickson said.

A Police Department news release later indicated two of the teens were in stable condition and only one was critical.

Dickson could not confirm the exact ages of the occupants, but believed they were 13, 15 and 16 years old.

“The driver I believe was the 15-year-old,” Dickson said.

The names of the juveniles were not released.

The same blue Hyundai had recently been stolen and recovered, but a set of keys was still outstanding from the initial theft, Dickson said.

The teens could be tied to the earlier theft if they are found to have been using the missing set of keys, Dicskson said.

Investigators have connected a 44-year-old man to two separate fatal shootings that occurred last month in El Monte.

A tarp is seen over a car on the 10 Freeway in El Monte on April 11, 2017. (Credit: KTLA)

Jorge Rosales of Hemet was arrested on April 15 following a pursuit through several cities after San Bernardino County sheriff’s deputies responded to a call about a man brandishing a firearm at a residence, according to statements from Los Angeles County sheriff’s officials and the California Highway Patrol.

Rosales, who fled in a silver minivan as deputies arrived on scene, was eventually detained on suspicion of illegally possessing a firearm.

Authorities did not disclose where the pursuit began and ended, or at what time it took place.

That same day, El Monte police had responded to an early morning shooting at the Baldwin Mini Park at 3750 Baldwin Ave., CHP officials said.

The victim, 35-year-old Alejandro Miranda, was found suffering from a gunshot wound and transported to a nearby hospital, where he died 11 days later. During his time in the hospital, Miranda was able to supply detectives with useful information, investigators said.

Officials eventually tied Rosales to the shooting death of a woman whose body was discovered in a Chevy sedan stopped on the shoulder of the eastbound 10 Freeway in El Monte just after 4 a.m. on April 11. The busy thoroughfare was shut down as the scene was processed and didn’t fully reopen until after 1 p.m., creating havoc during the Tuesday morning rush-hour.

The woman was found sitting in the driver’s seat with a gunshot wound in the right side of her head. She was later identified as 36 year-old Christine Ramos, a resident of Rialto.

The L.A. County Sheriff’s Department, El Monte Police Department, California Highway Patrol and San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department worked together to identify Rosales as the suspect in both incidents.

Investigators did not say what evidence existed linking Rosales to either crime, or what his relationship to the victims was.

Though Rosales was already in custody, authorities issued an arrest warrant on Monday charging him with two counts of first-degree murder, assault with a deadly weapon and possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, L.A. County sheriff’s deputies said.

He is being held on $6,135,000 bail at the San Bernardino County Jail, pending transfer to Los Angeles County Inmate Reception Center.

Detectives continue to investigate the crimes.

A candlelight vigil to honor the life of a 30-year-old woman who died in a boating accident on the Colorado River was planned for Friday night in Hemet.

Tasha Turner, right, and her 8-year-old daughter Genesis are seen in a photo posted to a GoFundMe page.

Family and friends planned to gather in Simpson Park on Rawlings Road at 7 p.m. in remembrance of Tasha Turner, who they say drowned after saving the lives of her daughter and boyfriend, who had planned to propose to her that day.

The three set out on a 19-foot closed-bow vessel with three other, unidentified passengers to go tubing on Aug. 5 near the town of Big River on the California-Arizona border, according to a statement from the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department. Officials say the boat was driven by Umberto Bagnara, a 52-year-old resident of Beaumont.

Around 6:30 p.m., the boat lost power, “became swamped” and began sinking, deputies said.

Though the six others on the boat were able to swim away from the sinking craft, Turner was tangled up in a ski rope that was tied to the vessel. Unable to free herself, she was pulled under with the sinking boat, according to sheriff’s officials.

Tasha Turner and her boyfriend are seen in a photo posted to a GoFundMe page.

Norris Salah wrote on the fundraising page she set up to raise money for Turner’s funeral and family that Turner’s boyfriend surprised her by planning the tubing trip in celebration of her birthday. He had a second surprise up his sleeve he never go to reveal, she said: A marriage proposal.

Since her boyfriend couldn’t swim, Turner wound up saving him and her 8-year-old daughter, Genesis, before being dragged underwater, according to Salah.

“Tasha lived every day for her family and friends inspiring and touching everyone she crossed paths with,” Salah wrote on the page. “Whether you grew up with her or you only met her once, she inspired and lifted you to always be better.”

A dive team from the La Paz County Sheriff’s Office in Arizona was able to locate the boat the same night it sank but had to return the next morning to search for Turner’s body due to strong currents and poor light. Both the ship and Turner’s body were recovered after the rescue crew returned the morning of Aug. 6.

San Bernardino County sheriff’s officials are continuing to investigate the incident.

An off-duty U.S. Border Patrol agent was arrested on suspicion of homicide early Saturday after a shooting in East Hemet that left a 27-year-old man dead, officials said.

U.S. Border Patrol Agent John Demery is seen in a booking photo. (Credit: Riverside County Sheriff's Department)

John Demery, 40, of Hemet, was booked at the Southwest Detention Center in Murrieta, according to a news release from the Riverside County Sheriff's Department.

He has been suspended from duty and placed on administrative leave pending an investigation into the shooting, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said in a statement.

Deputies responded about 12:47 a.m. to a call reporting an assault with a deadly weapon in the 41100 block of Toledo Drive (map). They arrived to find a man, later identified as Adam Thomas, suffering from multiple gunshot wounds, the news release said.

Thomas, a resident of Moreno Valley, was transported to a hospital where he died, officials said.

The suspect had confronted the victim at a nearby home, where an argument ensued between the two men before Demery opened fire, according to investigators from the sheriff's Central Homicide Unit.

Demery is assigned to the San Diego Sector Newton-Azrak Station in Murrieta.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection's Office of Internal Affairs and the Border Patrol's San Diego Sector are cooperating with the Sheriff's Department, which is leading the investigation.

A K9 with the San Jacinto Police Department was shot and killed Wednesday during a search for a wanted felon near Hemet.

Officers received a call around 2:30 p.m. involving the search for an armed suspect in the area of Mayberry Avenue and San Jacinto Street in the county area of Hemet, according to Riverside County Sheriff's Deputy Albert Martinez.

The SWAT team responded to the call, Martinez said.

During one of their searches, 3-year-old "Sultan," was shot by the suspect, according to Martinez. Sultan later died of his injuries.

The suspect was still believed to be barricaded in a home nearby.

Just before 10 p.m. a flash-bang grenade was heard outside the house.

Authorities had not revealed the name of the suspect or the reason he was being sought.

A police K-9 officer was mourned Thursday after being fatally shot during a police standoff in the Hemet area that ended in deputies killing the gunman.

A gunman was fatally shot by sheriff`s deputies Wednesday after a K-9 was fatally wounded in a standoff at a Riverside County home, authorities said.

The incident began about 2:30 p.m. Wednesday, when deputies responded to San Jacinto Street and Clark Drive (map) following a report that a wanted felon had been seen in the area, according to a Thursday news release from the Riverside County Sheriff's Department.

Upon arrival, the deputies were informed that the suspect was last seen in a property in the 40200 block of Clark Drive (map), the release said. A San Jacinto police officer and his K-9 partner, a 2-year-old Belgian Malinois named Sultan, responded to the location and assisted in the search.

The dog alerted authorities to a crawl space underneath a home and was sent in to determine if the suspect was hiding there. Moments later, an "indistinguishable" noise was heard and the K-9 returned with a gunshot wound to his neck, the Sheriff's Department said.

He was transported to a veterinarian hospital, where he died.

K-9 Sultan is shown in a still from a May 2014 YouTube video from the San Jacinto Police Department.

"Even though he is a dog, he's a peace officer. It hits home because it could have been one of the deputies," said San Jacinto resident Maritza San Nicolas. "He took a bullet for one of the deputies."

The sheriff's SWAT team was called to the scene. During the hourslong standoff, the SWAT personnel made numerous announcements in an attempt to convince the suspect to surrender, according to the release.

The SWAT team later deployed tear gas. Shortly afterward, the man emerged from underneath the residence armed with a handgun and was shot by deputies, the Sheriff's Department said. He was pronounced dead at the scene. No deputies were injured.

The deceased man's name was being withheld pending positive identification and notification of family, authorities said.

Steve Fish was among the local residents who were told to remain indoors while the barricade situation was ongoing.

"This is crazy. I've lived here since '83 and this is the first thing I've seen anywhere near like this," Fish told reporters.

In accordance with Sheriff's Department policy, the deputies involved in the shooting will be placed on administrative leave, the statement said.

Sultan, who was born in Slovakia, joined the San Jacinto Police Department in November 2013, according to a city website. He was partnered with Deputy Mark Wallace.

San Jacinto Mayor Crystal Ruiz said the dog's death was a "tragic loss for our citizens, for our family."

"He was one of us," Ruiz said.

KTLA's Melissa Pamer contributed to this article. 

More video:

A 36-year-old Hemet man was identified Friday as the person who deputies fatally gunned down after he allegedly shot and killed a police K-9 two days prior, according to Riverside County Sheriff’s Department officials.

Riverside County Sheriff’s Department officials provided this photo of Todd Allen Hodge, a 36-year-old Hemet man who allegedly shot and killed a police K-9 on Jan. 21, 2015.

Deputies searched a property Wednesday in the 40200 block of Clark Drive in Hemet (map) after receiving reports that a wanted felon was in the area when Sultan, a 2-year-old Belgian Malinois-German shepherd mix, led them to a crawl space underneath a home.

Once Sultan entered the crawl space an “indistinguishable” noise was heard and the dog returned with a gunshot wound to his neck, Sheriff's Department officials said at the time.

The K-9 later died at a veterinarian hospital.

After an hourslong standoff, SWAT personnel deployed tear gas and 36-year-old Todd Allen Hodge allegedly emerged from underneath the home with a handgun.

Hodge was then shot and killed by deputies, the Sheriff’s Department stated at the time.

More information regarding his possible criminal record was not immediately available.

Following the K-9's death, authorities and local residents shared their distress.

“Even though he is a dog, he’s a peace officer. It hits home because it could have been one of the deputies,” said San Jacinto resident Maritza San Nicolas. “He took a bullet for one of the deputies.”

A gunman was fatally shot by sheriff`s deputies Wednesday after a K-9 was fatally wounded in a standoff at a Riverside County home, authorities said.

The Sheriff's Department stated on Facebook Thursday that they were mourning Sultan's death and thanked "everyone for the overwhelming support during this time."

"To us, it's not just a dog. They are a partner. They are somebody who is with us for 10 hours a day, and up to 50 hours a week," Sheriff's Department Chief Jeff Raya said.

Mayor pro-tem Scott Miller echoed their sentiments.

"This has been a huge loss for us, our city and our people," he said.

Sultan joined the San Jacinto Police Department in November 2013 and was partnered with Deputy Mark Wallace, according to a San Jacinto city website.

He was originally from Slovakia and later "trained to locate hidden articles of evidence and to apprehend dangerous suspects," the website stated.

In accordance with Sheriff’s Department policy, the deputies involved in the shooting were expected to be placed on administrative leave, authorities said at the time.

Two earthquakes shook the San Jacinto area of Riverside County early Wednesday, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

The first — and larger of the two — was a magnitude-3.9 temblor that struck at approximately 12:39 a.m., the USGS’s incident page stated. It was centered two miles north northwest of San Jacinto and 4 miles north of Hemet.

Light shaking was felt throughout Riverside and San Bernardino counties, and as far away as Long Beach and San Diego County, according to USGS.

Another earthquake with a magnitude of 3.0 rattled the area less than two hours later, at about 2:19 a.m.

There were no immediate reports of injuries or damages.

Police in Hemet released graphic video Monday of a man being run over by his own car during an apparent road-rage confrontation, in the hope it might lead to the arrests of two men involved in the hit-and-run.

On Friday, officers responding to a call of a verbal disturbance in the 1400 block of S. Gilbert Street discovered a 53-year-old man lying in the street, according to a post on the Hemet Police Department's Facebook page.

A photo from the family's GoFundMe page shows Tracy Leavitt.

The victim was suffering from injuries consistent with being hit with a vehicle, the post stated.  He was transported to a local hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

Video of the event showed the victim, identified as Tracy Leavitt, involved in an apparent road-rage confrontation with two men, all of whom were standing next to their vehicles in the street.

During the confrontation, one of the suspects stole Leavitt's car and struck him with it at a high rate of speed, police said.

"I can't understand it," wife Sabine Leavitt said. "I cannot understand why they would want to do that."

Leavitt's vehicle was abandoned at the scene after the collision.

Video of the hit-and-run incident shows victim Tracy Leavitt talking to one of his attackers. (Credit: Hemet police Department)

Both suspects fled in a white 2006 to 2011 body style, standard cab Ford Ranger pick-up truck. The vehicle was believed to have a broken rear cab window, in addition to a broken driver’s side window, the post stated.

The assailants were described as White or light-skinned Hispanic men, between the ages of 18 and 25, about 5 foot 10 inches tall, with thin builds and brown hair.

A GoFundMe page has been set up to help the family with Leavitt's medical bills.

"Yesterday, he had the hip replacement surgery -- today he had leg and knee surgery," Sabine Leavitt said.

Anyone with information was asked to call Cpl. Gabe Gomez at 951-765-2324.

More video:

Two teenagers sought in road-rage confrontation on a Hemet street that culminated with a motorist being run over with his own car were arrested after police released graphic video of the incident, authorities said Thursday.

A photo from the family's GoFundMe page shows Tracy Leavitt.

The incident occurred last Friday in the 1400 block of S. Gilbert Street, according to a post on the Hemet Police Department's Facebook page.

Officers responding to a call of a verbal altercation found 53-year-old Tracy Leavitt lying in the street.

Video of the event showed Leavitt involved in an apparent confrontation with two men, all of whom were standing next to their vehicles in the street.

During the confrontation, one of the suspects stole Leavitt's car and struck him with it at a high rate of speed, police said.

On Tuesday, officers located and arrested a 17-year-old male who had been positively identified in connection with incident.

An undated photo of Michael “James” Williams, 18, was released by the Hemet Police Department.

Investigators were later able to identify a second suspect -- 18-year-old Michael “James” Williams. Williams was arrested Thursday evening after he surrendered to Hemet police.

Leavitt suffered multiple serious injuries in the crash, according to his family.

A GoFundMe page has been set up to help the family with Leavitt's medical bills.

More video:

A tiger cub that was found recently wandering near homes in Hemet has been taken to an animal sanctuary in the San Diego area.

The approximately 3-month-old male cub was turned in to the Ramona Humane Society on Thursday and transferred by the California Fish and Wildlife Department to the Forever Wild Exotic Animal Sanctuary in Phelan.

From there, he was taken on Saturday to the Lions, Tigers & Bears animal sanctuary in Alpine, which is located in the foothills east of San Diego.

"He's resting, eating well, and exploring his new environment. Monday morning he'll be making his media debut and checking in with the veterinarian," the organization stated in a Facebook post on Saturday.

It was still not known where exactly the baby tiger came from, and whether anyone had owned him.

Two women were found dead inside a home in Hemet Wednesday morning, and police were trying to find a person of interest in what investigators called a double homicide.

Officer went to a home in the 1200 block of South Buena Vista Street to conduct a welfare check just before 5 a.m., when they found two dead adult women inside. It was not clear how they died.

The two women were believed to be mother and daughter, one in her 60s and the other in her 90s, said neighbors, who described the victims as keeping to themselves.

Investigators following leads in the case were looking for 37-year-old Elisha Samson Chiles, according to a Facebook post from the Hemet Police Department. Police initially said Chiles was 27, but that information was updated in an email to news media.

Neighbors said the person of interest is a male relative of the victims.

Chiles has a long criminal history, including a 2013 conviction in Oklahoma for assault and battery on a police officer, court records showed.

He was also arrested twice in the Los Angeles area for felony crimes in 2007, records indicated.

Chiles was believed to be driving a charcoal gray Dodge Caravan with Oklahoma license No. 471 LIV.

Anyone with information on Chiles’ whereabouts was asked to call Investigator Doug Klinzing at 951-765-2423.

More video:

Elisha Samson Chiles is seen in a photo provided by the Hemet Police Department.

The suspect sought in what investigators described as a double homicide in Hemet was arrested in Mexico, police said Thursday.

Elisha Samson Chiles, 37, was detained by Tijuana police before being turned over to Hemet police investigators at the border Wednesday, the Hemet Police Department posted on their Facebook page.

Samson was named a person of interest following the deaths of two women found inside a home in the 1200 block of South Buena Vista Street on Wednesday.

The two women were believed to be mother and daughter, one in her 60s and the other in her 90s, according to neighbors, who described Chiles as being a relative of the victims.

Chiles has a long criminal history, including a 2013 conviction in Oklahoma for assault and battery on a police officer, court records showed.

He was also arrested twice in the Los Angeles area for felony crimes in 2007, records indicated.

Following his arrest, Chiles was described by police as a suspect in the killings and booked on two counts of murder.

He was being held on $1 million bail, the Police Department stated.

Anyone with information about the case was asked to contact Investigator Doug Klinzing at 951-765-2423.

Elisha Samson Chiles is seen in an undated mugshot distributed by the Oklahoma City Police Department. (Credit: KFMB)

A police shooting broke out after officers were called to a Hemet strip mall regarding a domestic violence incident, officials said Sunday.

A strip mall on the 3500 block of West Florida Avenue in Hemet is shown in a Google Maps Street View image from December 2016.

Officers arrived on scene at the shopping center in the 3500 block of West Florida Avenue around 6:30 p.m., the Hemet Police Department said in a statement.

Officials were met by a man who was allegedly brandishing a knife at them.

After refusing officers’ several orders to drop the weapon, the man began walking toward them, police said.

At that point, police shot the man. The department did not disclose how many shots were fired or how many officers fired their weapon.

It was also unclear where or how many times the man was struck, but officials said his wounds were not life-threatening.

The man was transported to a nearby hospital where he was treated for his injuries, police said.

No officers or bystanders were wounded in the shooting, officials said.

Hemet police were still investigating the scene early Sunday morning.

A 22-year-old man was found guilty of raping a woman while he was a football player at Cerritos College in Norwalk, officials said Friday, in his second rape conviction in less than five years.

Kishawn Holmes is seen in photo released by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department on March 2, 2017.

Kishawn Holmes of Hemet was convicted of forcible rape on Thursday by a jury that spent less than a day deliberating, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office said in a news release.

The rape occurred Sept. 8, 2016, after Holmes invited a 19-year-old woman who was also a Cerritos College student to his apartment in Norwalk, according to prosecutors. There, he sexually assaulted the woman in his room.

Investigators believed Holmes met his victim through her work as a student physical therapist who worked with football players and other athletes at the school, Sgt. Marvin Jaramilla with the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department previously told reporters.

The September 2016 rape took place just months following Holmes’ release from his status as a ward of the court as part of his sentencing after being convicted of multiple sex crimes as a minor.

Holmes was 17 and attended Vista Murrieta High School at the time, playing football for the school’s top-ranked team. After pleading guilty, he was sentenced to one year in custody a made a ward of the court until January 2016.

While it’s still unclear exactly what Holmes was convicted of in the 2013 case due to the closed nature of juvenile court proceedings, officials have confirmed he was convicted on multiple counts, among them forcible rape.

The charges in that case, involving six victims, included two counts of rape by force or fear; two counts of lewd and lascivious acts upon a child under the age of 14; three counts of false imprisonment; and one count of dissuading a witness who was one of the alleged rape victims.

Though he was a juvenile, the DA’s office released Holmes’ name because of the nature of the crimes. At the time, KTLA covered the story but chose not to publish Holmes’ name because he was a juvenile and had not been convicted. The Los Angeles Times reported Holmes’ name.

The 22-year-old is scheduled to be sentenced in the most recent case on May 2 in the Norwalk branch of L.A. County Superior Court.

He faces up to 18 years in state prison and lifetime sex offender registration. He was not required to register after the previous conviction because he was a juvenile.

Firefighters were working to contain a large brush fire that broke out south of Hemet, in unincorporated Riverside County, on Thursday.

The flames were first reported just before 2:20 p.m. in the 34000 block of Rawson Road, according to Cal Fire Riverside.

Just two hours later, it had grown to 300 acres and destroyed an unoccupied structure, and by 7:20 p.m. it covered 1,261 acres, officials said.

It was 40 percent contained, and by 10 p.m. it was no longer making forward progress, firefighters said.

The threat had prompted officials to place about six homes under a mandatory evacuation order, but the residents were allowed to return home after 10 p.m.

The blaze was being dubbed the Patterson Fire.

Aerial video showed patches of smoke and flames covering the foothills region that lies south of Diamond Valley Lake. Fire helicopters could be seen extracting water from the lake to dump on the fire.

Airplanes were also dropping lines of fire retardant in attempt to keep the flames from spreading.

Smoke was billowing north, toward the communities of Winchester and Hemet.

Nearly 100 firefighters were at the scene working to extinguish the flames.