Latest Robert Salonga Stories

By Robert Salonga CONCORD -- Richmond police will lead a procession today that will span much of the county on their way to a memorial at Sleep Train Pavilion for Officer Brad Moody, who died after a car crash earlier this month. Motorists can expect rolling closures among the processional route, expected to begin at 7:30 a.m., along eastbound Interstate 80 to a funeral home in Vacaville. Afterward, the procession will head back onto westbound I-80, south on Interstate 680, east on Highway...

By Robert Salonga MARTINEZ -- A sulfur spill early this morning on the Marina Vista on-ramp to southbound Interstate 680 did not pose a health hazard and was left to dissipate, the California Highway Patrol and a county hazardous materials official said. The spill, reported at the Marina Vista Avenue on-ramp about 6:40 a.m., came from a truck operated by Silva Trucking, of French Camp. The chemical involved was molten sulfur, which solidified on the roadway. Shell Oil contracted with the...

By Robert Salonga, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jul. 31--CONCORD -- The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating whether a Concord man repeatedly flew his small plane over his ex-girlfriend's neighborhood in violation of FAA rules. FAA spokesman Mike Fergus said his office does not comment on active investigations, but he confirmed that the Beech single-engine fixed-wing plane under scrutiny belongs to 50-year-old Thomas Mark Huey. Over a two-week period in July,...

By Robert Salonga, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jul. 11--ORINDA -- A monthlong investigation into the burglary of a local Greek restaurant may have been solved Thursday when a man was arrested with some of the stolen goods in his home, police said. Orinda police arrested 42-year-old Quintin Thompson at his Martinez home after investigators connected him to the June 21 burglary of Alekos Cafe where $2,000 of food and alcohol were stolen, said Orinda police Detective Nate...

By Robert Salonga, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jun. 24--MARTINEZ -- An oil pipeline burst and caused a minor spill on a city street Tuesday but no other damage, county hazardous materials staff members said. The break sprayed about a barrel's worth of oil onto Marina Vista Avenue, closing a segment of the street toward downtown Martinez for several hours. Hazardous materials personnel were called to the scene of the spill at 2000 Marina Vista Ave. about 10:45 a.m., said...