IN BRIEF
VICTIM DIED OF GUNSHOT WOUND
Coroner identifies remains found in trunk of burned car
The human remains found in the trunk of a burned-out car early Sunday morning belonged to 31-year-old Antonio Garcia Jr., the Clark County coroner's office has determined.
He died from a gunshot wound to the head.
Las Vegas police homicide detectives are investigating the killing after firefighters discovered Garcia in the trunk of a dark gray 2001 Toyota sedan with Nevada plates.
The car was ablaze on an access road off Lamb Boulevard, north of Cheyenne Avenue, at 12:07 a.m.
Anybody with information on the crime is encouraged to call Crime Stoppers at 385-5555.
BLAZE UNDER INVESTIGATION
Fire destroys convenience store in east part of valley
A late-night Wednesday fire destroyed an east Las Vegas business, officials confirmed Thursday.
Las Vegas Fire Department officials said the report of a fire at 1918 E. Charleston Blvd., near Eastern Avenue, was taken at 9:24 p.m.
Firefighters arrived at the scene, but the small convenience store was already engulfed in flames, officials said. There also were bars on all doors and windows, and the roof was showing weakness, so firefighters did not attempt to enter the building.
No injuries were reported. No one was in the store at the time of the fire, and cause is under investigation, officials said.
Damage is estimated at $200,000.
DEATH BELIEVED TO BE ACCIDENTAL
Las Vegas man found dead in apartment after fire identified
The man found dead after his central valley apartment caught fire Tuesday morning has been identified as 69-year-old Robert Stewart of Las Vegas.
Clark County firefighters discovered Stewart in Unit 559 of the Grand View Apartments, 4255 Viking Road, near Flamingo Road and Arville Street. Smoke was seeping through the apartment's window when firefighters arrived about 5:30 a.m.
After putting out the blaze, which was in the living room, they found Stewart's body on a couch.
Investigators believe the death was accidental and that he might have fallen asleep with a cigarette. Foul play is not suspected.
CALIFORNIA TOWN TARGETED
Drive-by shootings of six vehicles under investigation
Law enforcement authorities in Northern California are stepping up patrols as they investigate a series of drive-by shootings in a Sierra foothills community.
Six shootings of vehicles were reported Tuesday near Valley Springs, about 60 miles southeast of Sacramento. No injuries were reported, although some of the bullets narrowly missed the drivers.
There have not been any reports of shootings since then, Calaveras County Sheriff's Sgt. Dave Seawell said.
"Last night, thankfully, was quiet," he said Thursday.
News of the shootings prompted Cari Hernandez to be more cautious. She lives along the road where several of the shootings occurred. Four of the shootings were before dawn Tuesday, with the last two at 10:30 p.m. and 10:50 p.m. the same day.
"Coming home from Stockton last night we were trying to be careful," she said Thursday. "There's not really a back way we can take to our house. ... We were just careful, looking for anything suspicious."
Hernandez said she has lived in Valley Springs, a town of about 2,500 people, just three months. She returned to California from the Buffalo, N.Y., area to work at her sister's coffee shop.
"It's been pretty quiet, and then all of a sudden this happens," she said.
