Two active homicide investigations are underway in Mendocino County..
Deputies found a man dead in the roadway on Hulls Valley Road while following up on a 9 1 1 hangup late Friday night. Investigators linked that discovery to an earlier call to Adventist Health for a man with gunshot wounds. Deputies on Hulls Valley Road eventually found a third man shot and wounded and were able to connect all three cases. The two surviving victims were airlifted to out-of-county hospitals. The name of the man who died hasn’t been released. Deputies think the shootings all had something to do with a nearby illegal cannabis operation, run by drug traffickers. The Sheriff’s office promises more information as the cases unfold.
Deputies are also investigating ANOTHER apparently unrelated homicide in the county as well. That case follows the discovery of a man’s body on a cannabis farm in a rural part of Mendocino County earlier Friday morning. The Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office says the property owner, who lives in Texas, told the sheriff’s office that she heard second-hand that a man who lives and works on her property might have been murdered. Based on that. Deputies searched the over 100-acre property and discovered the man’s remains. The last time anyone had spoken to him was on May 5.
Police in Willits are planning to test their evacuation warning signal. Department patrol cars are equipped with a unique Hi-Lo siren that officers only use in emergencies that require immediate action. The test will be on Wednesday, the 28th, at 3:30, when officers will criss-cross the city playing that tone. If there were a real emergency, you’d also get a Nixle alert telling you what to do next. You can sign up at Nixle, om. Police say when you hear Hi-Lo, it’s time to go.
A Mendocino County program that worked to prevent wildfires and restore forests is being eliminated. The GrizzlyCorps program was a part of the national AmeriCorps program, which is facing federal budget cuts. The Grizzly Corps program has been in Mendocino County since 2000 under an initiative that matches volunteers with community needs. Members have served at Mendocino County’s Fire Safe Council and the University of California’s Hopland Research and Extension Center. The 42 volunteers across 20 California Counties will end their 11-month commitment this month, about 3 months early. The government says it will save around 400 million by cutting Americorps grants nationwide.
