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NOTE: The video successful this communicative is from an earlier report.
FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) - Federal charges filed against Bobby Salazar, the relation of the “Bobby Salazar’s” restaurants successful Fresno County, item the prosecution's allegations against the 63-year-old, which yet led to his apprehension by national officials connected Tuesday.
The transgression ailment describes grounds from recorded telephone calls, substance messages betwixt alleged co-conspirators, and adjacent however reddish shoelaces helped place a suspect.
According to documents filed successful national court, connected April 2, 2024, firefighters responded to 1 of Salazar's restaurants astatine Blackstone Avenue and Michigan Avenue pursuing a study of a fire. At the time, investigators described grounds of aggregate fires passim the building.
Salazar said helium owned that determination for implicit 20 years, and the edifice was past operated by a franchisee until Jan. 31, 2024. According to the affidavit, the franchisee wrote a missive to Salazar successful August 2023 giving announcement that they would nary longer beryllium operating the restaurant.
Salazar had reportedly requested that the franchisee halt doing concern nether the sanction “Bobby Salazar’s Mexican Restaurant and Cantina.” Since the franchisee would not beryllium capable to alteration the name, they had to terminate the lease, prosecutors say.
After the franchisee near the property, Salazar started utilizing the edifice arsenic a retention facility, prosecutors say. After the fire, investigators utilized a trained K9 portion to find 2 partially burned state cans.
Federal documents uncover that investigators saw the beforehand and rear doors of the gathering already unfastened the nighttime of the fire. A Fresno Fire Department researcher aboriginal recovered information footage from a adjacent residence that showed an SUV driving by the edifice the nighttime earlier the occurrence - and conscionable hours earlier the fire.
Prosecutors accidental the information footage besides revealed 2 radical walking astir the property. At astir 1:00 a.m., 1 of them was seen mounting 2 state cans adjacent the beforehand doors, past walking retired done the backmost doorway astir 2:00 a.m.
At that time, idiosyncratic was seen picking up 2 state cans and taking them backmost into the edifice done the backmost of the building. Then finally, astatine astir 2:08 a.m., the 2 radical exited the building, mounting occurrence to the state cans down them, prosecutors say.
On April 4, Fresno Fire requested a GeoFence warrant, which gives instrumentality enforcement the determination of devices wrong a circumstantial geographic country during a definite play of time. One of the radical wrong the SUV was identified done subscriber information connected their phone, cross-referenced with carnal characteristics that matched the surveillance video and past contacts with instrumentality enforcement, tribunal documents say.
Officials accidental connected May 1, 2024, officers served a hunt warrant astatine the identified person's residence. An interrogation resulted successful that idiosyncratic admitting to being progressive successful the fire, but denied being the idiosyncratic who started the occurrence and said that idiosyncratic who was already successful the Fresno County Jail astatine the clip of the occurrence was liable for starting it.
The national tribunal documents accidental that substance exchanges betwixt the 2 arson suspects confirmed engagement successful the incident.
"Yeah, you got paid each that wealth from bobby f***ing to bash what? A substance connection the pursuing time work "now u tin walk that wealth from bobbie connected your b****...even though I took penitentiary chances for ur anserine a**."
While successful jail, the fishy called the different connected the phone, prosecutors say, and during the telephone telephone said, "they person everything... down to what I was wearing, what you were wearing, [and] your b****'s car." Federal tribunal documents described the suspect's achromatic Vans shoes with a achromatic Vans emblem and reddish shoelaces were disposable successful information footage.
State pack investigators identified 1 of the suspects arsenic the President of the Screamin Demon's Motorcycle Club. On May 2, helium was arrested and booked into the Fresno County Jail.
While successful Fresno County Jail, the antheral fishy made respective telephone calls to his woman and the motorcycle club's sergeant-at-arms. During those calls, the antheral mentioned that Salazar was sponsoring an upcoming nine event, the "Shovelhead Run."
After the antheral was charged successful an unrelated national case, prosecutors accidental helium revealed to his woman and sergeant-at-arms that helium believed Salazar was the people of a national probe related to the arson. The Screamin Demon's Motorcycle Club President told his sergeant-at-arms to conscionable with Salazar truthful that Salazar could supply wealth for a lawyer, saying, "he's gonna enactment the wealth up for it, oregon helium tin travel to jailhouse with me."
After respective attempts to marque interaction with Salazar, the sergeant-at-arms was capable to conscionable with Salazar and study backmost to the nine president, according to national officials. During telephone calls with his wife, investigators accidental the nine president revealed accusation that indicated to investigators that Salazar was a co-conspirator and aider and abettor successful the arson.
When Fresno Fire investigators asked Salazar if helium knew either suspect, Salazar denied knowing the suspects. Salazar besides denied allowing them to pain his property, but telephone telephone records showed aggregate calls done respective months from the nine president to numbers connected to Salazar.
According to the transgression ailment against Salazar, Salazar had renewed the argumentation connected the Blackstone determination successful February 2024 and accrued sum by astir $102,000. The edifice gathering was yet covered for $908,050, not including sum of concern and idiosyncratic spot for $229,900, and nonaccomplishment of rent for $50,000.
The transgression ailment besides noted that Salazar had a past of connections to cases of arson and attempted arson. Cases that included the burning of a erstwhile aggregate employees' vehicles, his ex-brother-in-law's home, and an attorney's office.
The affidavit concludes that Salazar's past of arson, transportation to the suspects accused of burning his restaurant, and the fiscal inducement to pain the edifice were probable origin capable to warrant Salazar's arrest.
If convicted, helium could service up to 30 years successful prison. Salazar is scheduled to look successful tribunal connected Thursday, Aug. 28. However, national officials support that the charges are lone allegations; the suspect is presumed guiltless until and unless proven blameworthy beyond a tenable doubt. The transgression ailment filed successful national tribunal can beryllium work by clicking here.
