First-degree murder charges have been filed in Adams County against a man suspected of stabbing his ex-wife to death on Christmas Eve.
Albert Gallegos, 32, is being held in the Los Angeles County Jail awaiting extradition to Colorado, Commerce City police said.
Gallegos is a suspect in the death of 30-year-old Natisha Gallegos, a mother of three, whose body was found in her Commerce City home, police said.
Gallegos fled the state in a 1996 Pontiac Grand Am and was arrested in Los Angeles, police said.
He was also charged Tuesday with felony burglary and violation of a protection order his ex-wife had filed against him.
Additional local news briefs:
DENVER
Judge pleads guilty to driving while impaired
Denver County Judge Johnny C. Barajas pleaded guilty Wednesday to careless driving and driving while ability impaired.
Barajas, 49, was sentenced to 45 days in jail, but 40 days were suspended. For the remaining five days he will be on electronic monitoring, said Judge Philip Roan, who sentenced Barajas.
Careless driving is a four-point violation and DWAI is an eight-point violation.
Barajas was arrested Nov. 9 at West 26th Avenue and Federal Boulevard on suspicion of driving under the influence, police said.
Charges of following too closely, driving under the influence and driving without proof of insurance were dismissed.
The case was handled by the Jefferson County district attorney’s office.
Barajas also has to pay fees and supervision costs of $969.
JEFFERSON COUNTY
Four men indicted in sports-gambling case
Four men have been indicted by a Jefferson County grand jury for allegedly operating a sports-gambling ring, with one man accused of bookmaking while on duty at an Arvada post office.
Named in the 42-count indictment announced Wednesday are William Burbidge, 65, of Centennial; John Mencin, 57, of Denver; Todd Lane Vaughn, 42, of Brighton; and Mark J. Evans, 38, of Arvada.
Charges include violation of Colorado’s Organized Crime Control Act, professional gambling and conspiracy.
Between August 2005 and September 2006, the men solicited bets on sports events and accepted wagers, the indictment said.
LOVELAND
2 accused of stealing 26 cases of iPods
Two northern Colorado men have been accused of stealing almost $26,000 in electronic equipment, mostly Apple iPods, from Wal-Mart in what police describe as an inside job.
Gregg Friedman, 48, of Loveland, and Tim Sanderson, 33, of Fort Collins are suspected of stealing 26 cases of iPods from the Wal-Mart Distribution Center in Loveland, police said. The two men are maintenance workers at the center.
Friedman turned himself in to Loveland police on Wednesday and was released on a $2,500 bond. Sanderson was still at large Wednesday evening.
TRINIDAD
3.8 earthquake shakes 400-square-mile area
A magnitude-3.8 earthquake shook residents in a 400-square-mile area near Trinidad early Wednesday, the National Earthquake Information Center reported.
The quake, centered about 22 miles west-southwest of Trinidad near the small town of Cokedale, occurred at 7:34 a.m. No reports of damage have been received.
“It probably felt like just a little rumbling, like a truck passing by,” said Vince Matthews of the Colorado Geological Survey.
Since 1882, 43 earthquakes have occurred within a 50-mile radius of Wednesday’s event. The most recent quake in the area had been a 3.5 tremor in 2004.
Colorado’s largest observed earthquake, estimated by the U.S. Geological Survey at magnitude 6.6, occurred north of Estes Park in 1882. The quake caused damage along the Front Range as far south as Pueblo.
ROCKY FLATS
Site’s toxic waste to be burned in Tenn.
The Department of Energy plans to burn more than 10 million pounds of toxic waste from Rocky Flats and other states’ sites at a special incinerator in Oak Ridge, Tenn., before permanently closing the facility in three years.
The $26 million incinerator has burned about 31 million pounds of waste during its 20 years of operation.
Waste from a total of 11 out-of-state facilities is expected, including the Los Alamos and Sandia national laboratories in New Mexico.
DENVER
State agriculture chief retiring to family farm
Don Ament, who has served as Colorado’s top agriculture official since 1999, said Wednesday he is retiring to return to his family farm.
Ament, 64, said his retirement would be effective Tuesday, the same day Gov.-elect Bill Ritter will be sworn in to replace the term-limited Gov. Bill Owens.
“Serving as Colorado agriculture’s principal advocate has been the most rewarding part of my career,” Ament said.
