Bay Area News Roundup

A roundup of Bay Area stories making news today.

SF drug bust

San Francisco police on Sunday made one of the biggest drug busts in the department's history, seizing more than $1.5 million worth of MDMA powder and pills from an apartment near the city's Bernal Heights neighborhood.

Benjamin Hagerl, 36, and Steven Terrell, 31, were arrested at about 9:15 a.m. in the 3300 block of Mission Street, near 29th Street, police Chief Greg Suhr said.

The arrests were made shortly after police responded to a report of possible vandalism and burglary at a building there and found a first-floor window that was broken and stained with blood, police said.

There was a blood trail leading into the building, and police followed it to an apartment inside. That apartment was empty, but the blood trail continued to another apartment on the second floor, police said.

Officers knocked on the door of the second apartment and a man with blood on his hands and pants opened the door, according to police.

Police checked the apartment and found a second man inside, as well as duffel bags containing suspected narcotics. They detained the man who was covered in blood -- later identified as Hagerl -- and second man, Terrell, police said.

Investigators eventually determined that there were more than 23 kilograms of MDMA powder and more than 30,000 pills of the drug, also known as ecstasy or "molly," Suhr said. Officers also seized nearly $30,000 in cash and computer equipment, police said.

Hagerl and Terrell, both San Francisco residents, were taken into custody on suspicion of possession of controlled substances for sale, maintaining a place for selling or using controlled substances and conspiracy to commit a crime, according to police.

Terrell also has a separate drug trafficking case pending in Illinois that involves the sale of marijuana in that state, Suhr said.

Suhr pointed out that the MDMA was found the same weekend as the Outside Lands Music & Arts Festival in Golden Gate Park, and that investigators are looking into whether the stash was meant to supply concertgoers.

"We're happy if it is just a coincidence. If it's not, we're very happy that none of this found its way out to the Polo Fields," Suhr said.

The chief said the case, which he said was one of the biggest drug busts in the department's history, came about through simple happenstance.

"Sometimes you do get lucky, and in this instance we were lucky," he said.

Suhr said the case is being presented to the U.S. Attorney's Office to see if it meets guidelines for federal prosecution.

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Outside Lands

Lost your keys, wallet or phone at Outside Lands? Organizers of the three-day music festival that was held in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park last weekend are allowing people to come by the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium this week to claim lost-and-found items.

A list of the items has been posted online at www.outsideloaf.com and the items are available for pickup between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. until Friday at the concert hall at 99 Grove St.

The unclaimed items include several smartphones, numerous wallets, keys, cameras, credit cards, driver's licenses, three German passports, two U.S. passports and a hearing aid.

Pictures of many of the items have been posted online, and people can also call (415) 237-6021 for more information.

The festival, which wrapped up Sunday, included performances by artists including headliners Paul McCartney, Nine Inch Nails, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

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Body found in East Palo Alto

A woman's body was found at an East Palo Alto apartment complex this morning, and police are investigating the death as a homicide, a police captain said.

At about 6 a.m., officers went to the apartment building at 45 Newell Road after a man in custody in San Mateo County Jail made "spontaneous remarks" to deputies about a possible crime in one of the units, East Palo Alto police Capt. Federico Rocha said.

A woman believed to be in her late 40s was found dead inside the residence, Rocha said.

The suspect, whose name has not been released, had been arrested for drunken driving in Redwood City at around 9:30 p.m. on Monday, Rocha said.

He remains in custody but has not been arrested for homicide, Rocha said.

The San Mateo County coroner's office remained at the scene as of 9 a.m. today, he said.

The cause of the woman's death has not been determined, Rocha said.

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Fatal stabbing in Sunnyvale

The Santa Clara County medical examiner's office has identified a woman who was found stabbed to death inside her Sunnyvale home on Thursday as 55-year-old Marlene Nehez.

Nehez was found after officers were dispatched to the home at San Pedro and Coachella avenues in response to a call from her husband saying he had killed his wife, police said.

The husband, identified by the medical examiner as 68-year-old Michael Nehez, was gunned down in a confrontation with a SWAT team after a morning standoff at the home.

According to the medical examiner's office, Michael Nehez died of multiple gunshot wounds and Marlene Nehez was killed by a stab wound that penetrated her heart.

Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety Capt. Dave Pitts said the SWAT officers opened fire on Michael Nehez shortly before 10 a.m. as he lunged at them with a 12-inch kitchen-type knife at the entrance to the home.

Nehez had phoned police at about 8 a.m. that day to tell them about his wife's murder, Pitts said. Police surrounded the residence, evacuated nearby homes and shut down streets in the area.

The motive for Marlene Nehez's murder remains under investigation, but Pitt said today that police had been called to the home on multiple prior occasions to investigate domestic disturbances.

He said both the husband and wife had been arrested previously on suspicion of domestic violence against each other.

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Body found on I-880 ramp ID'd

A man whose body was found on an on-ramp to Interstate Highway 880 in San Jose on Monday afternoon has been identified by the Santa Clara County medical examiner's office as 51-year-old Jean-Marc Delbecq.

At about 4:20 p.m. Monday, the San Jose Fire Department notified the California Highway Patrol of a report of a body near the on-ramp from The Alameda to northbound I-880.

Someone working on a nearby rooftop had spotted the body near the sound wall along the cloverleaf-shaped on-ramp, CHP officials said.

The medical examiner's office has yet to perform an autopsy on Delbecq, who has no known city of residence, to determine what caused his death.

The CHP, which is handling the investigation, reported today that there is no evidence of foul play.

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Fatal crash in Santa Rosa

A Santa Rosa woman was killed Monday when her car collided with another vehicle on westbound Interstate Highway 80 at the Interstate Highway 680 interchange in Fairfield, a California Highway Patrol officer said.

Patricia Burrows, 73, of Santa Rosa, was driving a 1957 Ford Fairlane in the far right lane of westbound I-80 when the crash happened around 3:35 p.m., CHP Officer Erika Grossbach said.

Burrows shifted one lane to the left to pass a 2001 Nissan Xterra that was traveling ahead of her, Grossbach said.

As she changed lanes, Burrows lost control of the Ford, which veered to the left then back to the right and struck the driver's side of the Nissan, Grossbach said.

The impact forced the Nissan into a field near the cloverleaf-shaped interchange, where it came to rest.

The Ford also drove into the field, passed the Nissan and struck a tree, Grossbach said. Burrows was pronounced dead at the scene.

The driver of the Nissan, 50-year-old Vicki Blair, of Santa Rosa, suffered only minor injuries.

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Cal State Hayward weekend closure

California State University, East Bay, is shutting down its campus in Hayward this weekend to allow crews to demolish the school's former administration building.

Warren Hall, which housed school administration offices and classrooms for about 40 years, is scheduled to be demolished by implosion at about 9 a.m. Saturday.

Because of the demolition, the campus at 25800 Carlos Bee Blvd. is closing to the public at 8:30 p.m. Friday and will reopen at 6 a.m. Monday, school officials said.

Warren Hall, which opened in 1971, was found by a CSU seismic review board to be the most seismically vulnerable building in the CSU system, according to the school.

The building has been empty for about two years, and most of its occupants have been moved to a new Student Services Administration building on the east side of the campus, school officials said.

The school is advising members of the public who wish to witness the implosion to find a public place with a clear view of Warren Hall.

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Weather

Tonight will be mostly clear, with just a few patches of fog. Low temperatures will be mainly in the mid 50s. Tomorrow will be sunny and warm, with highs ranging from mid 60s at the coast to mid 90s inland.

Concord 91
Oakland 80
Redwood City 84
San Francisco 72
San Jose 86
Santa Rosa 87

Coast
Tonight: Mainly Clear
Lows: Mid 50s
Tomorrow: Sunny & Mild
Highs: Mid to Upper 60s

East Bay
Tonight: Mostly Clear
Lows: Upper 50s
Tomorrow: Sunny & Warm
Highs: Upper 70s to Low 80s

East Bay Valleys
Tonight: Mostly Clear
Lows: Mid to Upper 50s
Tomorrow: Sunny/Warm to Hot
Highs: Low to Mid 90s

North Bay Valleys
Tonight: Mostly Clear
Lows: Low to Mid 50s
Tomorrow: Sunny & Warm
Highs: Upper 80s

Peninsula
Tonight: Mostly Clear
Lows: Mid to Upper 50s
Tomorrow: Sunny & Warm
Highs: Upper 70s to Mid 80s

South Bay
Tonight: Mostly Clear
Lows: Mid to Upper 50s
Tomorrow: Sunny & Warm
Highs: Mid 80s to Low 90s

Thursday:
Sunny & Warm
Highs: 66 Coast to 92 Inland

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