Cirilo Castillo, 54, a resident of Edinburg, faces a bestiality charge and two counts of criminal trespass, with a bail of 70 mil dollars. Authorities noted that he had already been prosecuted in 2022 for animal sex and in 2013 for animal cruelty and trespassing, which alarms the population of the Valle del Río Grande.

Vincent Andrew Gutiérrez, 32, was sentenced to seven years in federal prison for downloading child pornography via BitTorrent, and ordered to pay 3,000 dólares in restitution and five years of supervised release. Judge Randy Crane convicted him after 412 images and four videos were found, warning the Rio Grande Valley community about the use of file‑sharing networks.

A third civil lawsuit was filed in Hidalgo County against Ramón Ayala, Ramón Ayala Jr., and the group “Ramón Ayala y sus Bravos del Norte.” According to the original petition filed with the court, the plaintiff, identified as John Doe #3, alleges that he was the victim of physical assaults and allegedly sexual conduct committed by…

Five people who said they were members of the Gulf Cartel were detained by the Border Patrol and the Texas Department of Public Safety in Starr County. The operation took place Wednesday morning when migrants were intercepted on a raft on the Rio Grande near the border area with Miguel Alemán, and then they boarded a Ford F‑150 driven by José Raúl Aldape Hernández, 31, who said he charged about 100 dollars per person.

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) -- Brownsville Fire Department crew members are touring school campuses to keep students informed about fire safety. Fire crews visited Perez Elementary School on Wednesday to demonstrate how to respond during a fire emergency. "We're here to teach them about the 911 system, what numbers to dial, if there was an emergency, [...]

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The San Benito Police Department announced Wednesday that it will postpone its annual National Night Out celebration. Authorities announced on social media that the event was postponed due to weather. National Night Out is an annual celebration that connects law enforcement with communities across the U.S. The San Benito National Night [...]

Four men—Mario “Chencho” Alejandro Sanchez, Orlando Olaguer Rabadan, John Phuc Phan and Hector “Cuatro” Jesus Martinez Jr.—were arrested Monday for the murder of Eric Garcia, who was found with multiple stab wounds in a San Juan parking lot on North Veterans Boulevard Saturday around 2:21 a.m. Police noted a blood‑stained white Ford Expedition and a red Cadillac driven by Phan at the scene, and surveillance footage matched the suspects.

State and defense attorneys rested their cases Wednesday in the Rogelio Martinez death‑penalty trial after jurors viewed an interview in which the 21‑year‑old defendant admits to the Oct. 17, 2023 shooting that killed San Benito police Lt. Milton Resendez. Martinez tells Texas Ranger Patrick O’Connor he fired only to scare officers and protect children in the red GMC truck, while the chase spanned South Padre Island, Brownsville and San Benito.

Guadalupe Garcia Vela, a 32‑year‑old Mission resident, was acquitted on Tuesday of capital murder charges stemming from the Dec. 20, 2015 shooting that killed Yvette Garza and Nathalie Ingridh Hernandez. The case, which began with Palmview police responding to gunfire on Eastview Circle and included a mistrial after a July 2022 jury deadlock, ended with the jury finding Vela not guilty after a trial that started Sept. 23.

McALLEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — A “local golfing legend” is ready to accept responsibility for running an illegal sports gambling ring, according to his attorney. Ronald Lynn Kilby, 71, of Lakeway, Texas — who owns Killer’s Golf in McAllen — plans to plead guilty to a federal conspiracy charge. “This went on for so long – [...]

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — An Edinburg man was sentenced to 60 years in prison after being found guilty of trying to burn his pregnant girlfriend alive and holding her against her will, according to Hidalgo County District Attorney Toribio "Terry" Palacios. Jorge Luis Ramos, 45, of Edinburg, was found guilty by a Hidalgo County Jury [...]

McALLEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — After a long day of opening statements and several witnesses' testimonies on Monday, day two of the Rogelio Martinez trial began Tuesday morning, after a 30-minute delay. Martinez is charged with capital murder in the shooting death of San Benito Police Lt. Milton Resendez. State District Judge Ricardo M. Adobbati swore [...]

A 45‑year‑old Edinburg man, Jorge Luis Ramos, was sentenced to 60 years in prison after being convicted of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, unlawful restraint, continuous family violence, and assault of a pregnant person. The crimes stem from a Dec. 2, 2024 incident in which neighbors heard Ramos beating, burning and attempting to set fire to his pregnant girlfriend, leaving her with severe facial and body injuries.

The Honoring Texas Victims Report, released Thursday, documents that nine people in the Rio Grande Valley were killed by abusive partners in 2025—five in Hidalgo County (three women and two men), three women in Cameron County, and one man in Willacy County. Statewide, the same report shows 160 Texans were murdered by current or former intimate partners in 2025, with Hidalgo tied for seventh among counties for such homicides.

Jurors in San Benito saw video of officers pulling Lt. Milton Resendez from his patrol car, loading him onto a truck and taking him to a hospital in Harlingen. The clip shows the Oct. 17, 2023 shooting of a 27‑year‑veteran after a chase that began on South Padre Island and went through Brownsville; Rogelio Martinez, charged with murder of an officer, has pleaded not guilty and prosecutors will seek death penalty.

McALLEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — In March, when customs officers caught Acxel Marquez transporting drugs, his mother received a phone call. Marquez had crossed the border with 121 pounds of methamphetamine. If convicted, he faced a mandatory minimum of 10 years in federal prison. “Her response was: ‘Ni modo,’” Assistant Federal Public Defender Christina Conway-Navarro said [...]

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The city of Lyford issued a boil water notice for residents Monday night. The boil water notice follows a main water line break that caused the City of Lyford's public water system to lose pressure. The cause of the break is still under review. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality required [...]

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — A body was recovered from the Rio Grande near Escobares on Monday morning, the Starr County Sheriff's Office said. READ ALSO: Man who smuggled meth for his mother sentenced to nearly 5 years in prison U.S. Border Patrol and the La Rosita Volunteer Fire Department helped sheriff's investigators recover the body [...]

BROWNSVILLE, Texas (ValleyCentral) — Monday marked the first day of the capital murder trial for Rogelio Martinez Jr., who is charged with the killing of San Benito Police Department Lt. Milton Resendez during a vehicle pursuit in San Benito on Oct. 17, 2023. Martinez was initially pulled over for a traffic violation on South Padre [...]

McALLEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — In March, when customs officers caught Acxel Marquez transporting drugs, his mother received a phone call. Marquez had crossed the border with 121 pounds of methamphetamine. If convicted, he faced a mandatory minimum of 10 years in federal prison. “Her response was: ‘Ni modo,’” Assistant Federal Public Defender Christina Conway-Navarro said [...]

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) – The City of La Grulla says a water leak triggered low water pressure so they have issued a boil water notice. City Administrator Robert Salinas says the city's public water system was ordered by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality to notify residents to boil water until the water testing comes [...]

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) – Four suspects were arrested in connection with a stabbing that killed a 44-year-old man early Sunday morning in San Juan, police said. The San Juan Police Department said all four suspects are expected to be charged with murder when they appear before a judge Monday afternoon. Two of the men were [...]

HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) – Two Mission men are dead after one of them is accused of running a red light on Sunday afternoon, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety. DPS said the crash happened around 5 p.m. at the intersection of FM 1924 and Minnesota Road north of Palmview in Hidalgo County. According to [...]

A Hidalgo County jury sentenced 38‑year‑old Armando Adrian Arebalo of McAllen to life without parole for the June 19, 2017 killing of 41‑year‑old Nicholas Anthony Bazan during a botched cash and meth robbery. The shooting happened in the 2100 block of North Main Street, McAllen, after police responded to gunfire calls at 12:42 a.m.; co‑defendant Alex Arevalo earlier received a 45‑year term, and three other suspects remain charged with capital murder.