Crime

A 40-acre wildfire that sparked Tuesday afternoon in a canyon just south of the U.S. 101 and Highway 25 interchange sent smoke billowing throughout the Garlic Capital.

Calfire has awarded a $117,000 grant to the San Benito Fire Safe Council for prevention efforts.

The Hollister Police Department is asking for help from the public in identifying a suspect accused of taking items from the local Walgreens store without paying Sunday.

The 23-year-old Hollister man accused of driving under the influence and killing a 37-year-old local man pleaded not guilty at an arraignment hearing Tuesday and had his bail increased to $250,000, according to court records.

Hollister resident Omar Carino Mendez, 33, was killed in Monday’s seven-vehicle accident on Highway 25, according to Capt. Eric Taylor of the San Benito County Sheriff’s Office.

Authorities have identified the Hollister motorcycle rider killed Sunday in a head-on collision.

Hollister police released the following statement after 8 p.m. Monday following a five-vehicle fatality on Highway 25:

An accident involving six cars and a big rig ended in at least one fatality and closed Highway 25 in both directions Monday afternoon, according to initial reports from California Highway Patrol.

A Hollister man on a motorcycle was killed in a head-on collision Sunday night, and the driver of the other involved vehicle was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence, according to the California Highway Patrol.

A small airplane landed on U.S. 101 on Saturday night, according to authorities.